Seura Magazin nr 43 /2005

Patty

"A diva, a scapegoat and a band without a star"

Sunday mornig:

I hear the news. There is a letter published in the Nightwish website. The singer Tarja Turunen is kicked out of the band.

The letter is very straight: your attitude and behaviour is no more Nightwish style. I have noticed such features in you, that I would have never believed to notice in my dear, old friend.

The main reason for this is that the other members of the band think that money and stuff not related to music have become more important to Tarja than the music itself. Marcelo Cabuli, Tarjas husband and her manager is mentioned in the letter as scapecoat. I know who we are talking about

I met Cabuli last spring in Buenos Aires, where I was to interview Tarja. Cabuli seemed very calm man, who regards her wife very protectively.

For example he didn't want us (Tarja, me and female photographer) to go alone to the notorious part of the town, LaBoca. He sent his father David to protect us.

Now I contact him via e-mail. He says it is not the right time to talk. "Let the fire burn

When we have something instead the fire (something seems to be missing here, it doesn't make any sense...)

we will have a prees conference in Helsinki about the situation and express how we feel about the letter and the way they handle things".

"This is a sad moment for us, I mean Tarja, me, the four members of the band and the fans all over the planet. All I can ask for fans to do is wait. There is a lot to be said and the truth must be told. The time will come soon and we tell about it to everyone who wants to hear it" Says Cabuli.

The letter was signed with only the first names. First Tuomas and the rest of the members Emppu, Jukka and Marco under it on the same line. So the letter is Nightwish-composer Tuomas Holopainen's thoughts which the other guys agree.

What do we really know about the relatonship between Tarja Turunen and rest of the band? What is their relationship really been like on the nine year long career that took to megasucces?

In the early summer Tarja commented the matter in Seura's interview. Half joking she said that she would never ask any of the band mates for a goodfather for her possible child.

When I asked about the relationship with the guys the answer was unclear. Actually she didn't seem that keen to talk about the matter. The question kept bothering me so I asked again. Tarja told that the relationship was friendly. "We know each other so well. But we don't call among ourselves between tours. We keep in touch only when we need to." Now the letter says, that Tarja hasn't talked to the other members for a year.

In the summer Tarja admitted that as the only woman of the group she felt a bit as a stranger. "It's been tough to handle with the guys. That's why my husbend is a support to me, whom without I wouldn't go anywhere. But I have never been a complaining hag and I haven't demanded attention just because I'm a woman."
In fridays consert Tarja's voice sounded beatiful and mature. She was the queen of the stage.

In the consert, there was music, explosions and fireshowers and it ended with fireworks. All of this was meant to celebrate the succeful tour of the band, but was it exlploding for the end of Nightwish?
Tarja Turunen has a month to process the matter and pull herself together, because in December she stars a carefully planned Christmas tour. The first consert is in Savonlinna, where the road goes on for example to Berlin, where she performs on independence day, Barcelona and to Sibiu, Romania.

Otherwise as well, she's planning to consontrate on classical music in the next year. For example she has a consert with Raimo Sirkiä in the Opera festival in Savonlinna. Nightwish has always been defined as a group from Kitee, even though only Tuomas and Tarja are from there. They have know each other for a long time, since school. And Tuomas' mum Kirsti Nortia-Holopainen was Tarja's piano teacher.
Now the path of old shcoolmates has separated.

(page five)
Tuomas Holopainen: The letter is true
Tarja Turunen: Cruel and sad
'A very good gig'
Tarja Turunen's comments about fridays gig were still happy. "It was fantastic to end a long and hard tour in front of a finnish audience. Luckily it was saved on a DVD."

A textmessage gotten on sunday had a different tone. "I'm shocked about what happened" Tarja Turunen comments.
"The way this was told to the public was cruel and sad. Wouldn't it been enough to make this touch only me? But dragging my husbend in to this was shoking. Luckily this will never destroy the brilliant music we made with Nightwish."

Tuomas Holopainen stands behind his words.
"The letter absolutely true, from word to word. I have saved for example Marcelo's e-mails and they don't leave much to argue with. We had to cancel Oslo's sold out gig because of weird reasons" Tuomas says depressed.

"I want to point out that I don't feel anger toward Tarja, I'm just extremly disappoined and very frustrated. A sweet country girl turned into a diva, who doesn't think or dehave like she used to. "

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