Although Finland is a relatively small country in northern Europe, it has a sizable, high quality music scene. These are some noteworthy recordings from the Nordic nation.
The album from Finnish duo Aino & Miihkali performs mesmerizing music rooted in northern Karelian traditions and West African beats. The Helsinki-based duo uses the traditional kantele zither and guitar along with vocals and loop pedal.
Aino is Finland’s leading progressive kantele player, known for her work with Uniruukki. She is also a composer and vocalist. On this recording she sings in three different languages, Finnish, Swedish and English.
Miihkali’s is a virtuoso guitarist, influenced by jazz, blues and bluegrass banjo. He studied at the celebrated Berklee College of Music.
Aino & Miihkali started playing together in the spring of 2017 released their self-titled album in 2019.
Pirttijärvi , Skullerud and Torget’s debut album on the Bafe’s Factory label is titled Áššu (Embers). The trio’s style is rooted in traditional Sami Joik. Ulla Pirttijärvi joiks about her extended family and her home villages, Utsjoki and Angeli. Olav Torget and Harald Skullerud complement the ensemble with string instruments and percussions. The group draws further inspiration from West African rhythms and traditions.
Áššu won The German Record Critics’ Award in 2019 in the world music category.
Puhti is an innovative Finnish folk group that incorporates dance and electronic sound design along with traditional finish music. Their music on the album Pahan Lalulu includes fiery accordion and percussion pieces along with meditative songs featuring kantele and harmonic singing. The duo includes Anne-Mari Kivimäki on accordion, stomp box, harmonium and vocals and Reetta-Kaisa Iles on stomp box and vocals.
Tuuletar is an exploratory a cappella group influenced by traditional Finnish music, overtone singing and beatbox culture. Their latest album is Rajatila – Borderline (Bafe’s Factory, 2019) is full of amazing vocal wizardry. Two additional musicians appear as guests: Pekko Käppi on bowed lyre and vocals and Antti Paalanen on accordion and roars.
The Helsinki Soundpainting Ensemble was founded in 2007. It is an improvisational ensemble featuring musicians from Helsinki. On its self-titled album “Helsinki Soundpainting Ensemble,” they use soundpainting-language to compose music and combine various musical styles, including folk music and avant-garde music.
The ensemble includes Sonja Korkman on soundpainting; Charlotta Hagfors on vocals; Teea Aarnio on vocals; Amanda Kauranne on vocals; Mimmi Laaksonen on flutes; Turkka Inkilä on flute; Anu Keski-Saari on cello; Sigurdur Rognvalsson on guitar; Ilkka Heinonen on acoustic bass; and Oskari Lehtonen on percussion and drums.
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.