Sweet girl from Kitee

Tarja Turunen's long career has been shadowed by the death of her mother Marjatta, couple of years ago.

Natural and just a regular girl. This is how people from Kitee discribe Tarja Turunen, the pride of their hometown.
Many people remember Turunen family, who lived in Puhos village, very well. Tarja was second youngest of three of their kids, and all of them were musically very talented.
Marjatta, her mother took Tarja to her music hobbies since she was just a little.
Even though Tarja hasn't been living in Kitee for a long time, citizens still use words like kind, conscientious and normal.
When she was still in school, she wasn't any different from the others, exept when she opened her mouth, and started to sing.

Music teacher Plamen Dimov met Tarja for the first time in 1991.
-I was amazed immidietly, cos her voice was perfectly clean, Dimov recalls.
As a little girl, Tarja used to sing songs from Whitney Houston and Stevie Wonder.
Dimov remembers funny detail, when they were singing together a beautiful ballad.
-I asked Tarja's father, if we can play such a song, and he said go ahead and do it, nobody understands a single word of English in Kitee, Bulgarian born Palmen tells.

When she was young girl, she used to sing in a kvintet called Take 5. They performed in Joensuu, Kuopio and Vantaa. Plamen never notest that she would' ve had any difficulties to fit in.
Also her family was in, in her music hobby. Mother helped her, and allways took her to her hobbies.
Besides singing, Tarja also played piano and flute in music school.
Her both brothers were also very musical.
-At some point in 1990's, I started to give 10's (scale from 4 to 10) from music lessions at school, based on the last name of the student, Plamen laughs with tears in his eyes.

Tarja was very independent at very young age, she moved to Savonlinna at the age of 15 to go to art school.
Later she has studied for church music in Sibelius Academy, in Kuopio like Plamen's wife.... (i don't know what the last line says there, cos there's been a scanning problem... )
While she was allready studying, she did some church concerts in her hometown.
She had one of those Valentine's Day concerts, Leena Dimov (who is most likely Plamen's wife) recalls, and she was also helping in confirmation class.
-She was very regular and natural girl, who amazed with her singing skills.

In Kitee, lots of people remember how couple of years ago Tarja's life changed. Her mother Marjatta, who was allways supporitve to her daughter, died for a cancer. Tarja had kept feelings about her mothers death to herself.
People are still talking about her, and remembering Tarja's mother warmly.


Big picture of little Tarja says: 1990 Tarja at Neulaniemi band camp.
1st picture at the top center: Active musician, Tarja front row right.
2nd picture: Kvintet called Take 5 was practicing with Palmen Dimov, Tarja front row, right.
3rd picture: Churc concert in church of Kitee, Tarja's accompany Janne Piipponen.
4th picture: Marcelo's bachelor party. People in a picture Emppu, Tarja, Marcelo and Toni (Tarja's brother)
5th picture: Home. Tarja's home in Puhos village is on idylic place right next to the larchforrest. Nowdays no Turunen's live in that house.

Upper right corner:
"Frienly to everyone"
Tarja was kind of outward, nice person, says Janne Toropainen, who runs Nightwish Shop in Kitee. Who went to school same time with Tarja, but different class. He doesn't remember that she was making noise about herself in school.
-She wasn't any kind of tough girl, but very sweet and beautiful. Very neutral and friendly to everyone.
They didn't hang out in same groups, so he didn't get to know her much better.
-My image about her is conscientious and talented student.

Picture text: Janne Toropainen has sold lots of Nightwish fan-stuff with the whole band's picture.

Below ^that:
"Nice student"

Kari Lauronen, principal of Puhos grade school became a teacher to the school in 1986. That's when Tarja was in 3rd grade. He remembers her normal nice student.
-They're not that different from each others in that age, but musically, she was exeptional, he recalls.
After teaching Tarja for two years, he decided to write some songs for her, that she was singing in different happenings.
-That's when we started every year singing contest, that is still going.

Picture text: In Puhos grade school had around 100 students. Teacher Kari Lauronen remembers Tarja being exeptional talented singer.

Below ^that:

"Beautiful allredy as a child"

Boys from Kitee remember that Tarja looked awesome allready when she was a kid.
-She was very independent back than allready, but other than that, she was a normal kid. Damn good looking though, recalls Arto Jumppanen, who was in same grade school in Puhos.
Also Ari Pitko has only good things to say.
-She was very calm. As far as I know, very conscientious student.