#traditional finnish folk music | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

sohvamoondove · 2 months

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February 12, 2024

Some kind of impressionism came out, I like it

Category "absolutely random music from my playlist"

#art #artists on tumblr #small artist #traditional art #watercolor #drapery #music #finnish #finnish music #folk music #Spotify

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mellowchouchou · 2 years

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#Niekku #folk music #folk #Finland #Finnish folk music #traditional #traditional music

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robotpussy · 1 year

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i was just about to watch this video by Cheyenne Lin

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Avatar and the Wh*te Imagination (or lack thereof)

about the limits of white imagination and how evident it is in the Avatar movies, and it just reminded me that james cameron worked with an ethnomusicologist, Dr Wanda Bryant, to make music for the na'vi because he wanted something that "would sound like nothing we’ve ever heard on earth" then he decided what was made was too otherworldly and decided that their music should just be what white people would call "alien" and ethnic, aka, whatever music exists in African, Asian and Native American cultures (and that was the final result).

Originally there were many influences coming from all over the globe, but when Cameron listened to the demos, he claimed it was too recognisable as well as too 'weird', albeit for white people and just pushed for a more 'down to earth' version. Avatar is evidence of the continuation of generalized exoticism and stereotyping still being a driving force in Hollywood

[IMAGE ID: A screenshot of a segment from the journal entry written by ethnomusicologist, Dr Bryant discussing the process of creating the music for the avatar films that reads:

"In our initial phone conversation, Horner asked me to find unusual musical sounds that “no one has heard before,” by which he really meant sounds not readily recognizable by the average American movie-goer as belonging to a specific culture, time period, or geographical location"

/END ID]

[IMAGE ID: A screenshot of a paragraph from the journal entry written by ethnomusicologist, Dr Bryant discussing the process of creating the music for the avatar films that reads:

"Through a process of elimination we came up with 25 workable possibilities, including examples of Swedish cattle herding calls, folk dance songs from the Naga people of Northeast India, Vietnamese and Chinese traditional work songs, greeting songs from Burundi, Celtic and Norwegian medieval laments, Central African vocal polyphony, Persian tahrir, microtonal works by Scelsi, the Finnish women’s group Vârttinä, personal songs from the Central Arctic Inuit, and brush dances from northern California. None was an exact blueprint of what we were seeking, but each had at least one interesting musical device or characteristic that we could utilize. In some cases, it was a timbre that we might hope to mimic; in other cases, it may have been a song structure, an ornamentational style, or interesting intonation."

/END ID]

[IMAGE ID: A screenshot of a paragraph from the journal entry written by ethnomusicologist, Dr Bryant discussing the process of creating the music for the avatar films that reads:

"Horner then met with Jim Cameron for his input on our musical ideas. Cameron is a very hands-on director and wants to be kept in the loop about all major decisions. Most of the ideas we presented were dismissed by Cameron out of hand, rejected with appropriately blue language as either too recognizable (“Oh, that’s Bulgarian”) or just “too fucking weird!” Half a dozen examples were approved as possibilities."

/END ID]

You can read the full article here:

There is also a video by sideways that discusses this (if you don't want to read):

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#avatar #avatar 2 #sorry for the long post i just.... its the avatar hater in me #i hate this racist alien franchise so much #ref #text #film #i wasnt sure whether to put any of this under a cut #but i dont think this is too long ill have to see when it posts #Youtube #music

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holyprincenerd · 11 months

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Hi ! Do you have any finnish music recommandations ? Feel free with the genre I'm quite open. I love discovering music in other languages but I'm always worried the lyrics will be saying something really terrible 😆

Hi! I'm all for spreading Finnish music, so of course! Just a fair warning, this ended up quite lengthy... Sorry about that. 😅 Here's a tl;dr version just in case you don't feel like reading about all the genre gushing and lyrical details, I couldn't help myself haha:

Pop, schlager and rock songs:

Ram Pam Pam by BESS

Tinakenkätyttö, Kaunis rietas onnellinen, and Supernaiset by Kaija Koo

Lähtisitkö by Pave Maijanen

Hei Rakas by BEHM

Soutaa Huopaa and Saatilla by Elokuu

Henkilökohtaisesti by PMMP, as well as their albums Leskiäidin Tyttäret and Kovemmat Kädet (content warning on these, if you end up reading translations of the lyrics, some of the songs on these albums deal with some heavy topics!)

Pauhaava sydän, Hetkeksi en sulle rupia, and Suudellaan by Lauri Tähkä & Elonkerjuu

Marmoritaivas by Johanna Kurkela

Suru on kunniavieras by Jenni Vartiainen (though her entire discography is phenomenal)

Che Guevara by Happoradio

Kaikki mitä mä annoin by Uniklubi

Samantekevää by Tiktak

Ikuinen Virta by Indica

Joutsenlaulu by Yö

Metal (or heavier) songs:

Hengitä by Turmion Kätilöt (content warning again, some of this band's songs have quite spicy lyrics, though I'd say a good portion of those songs are satirical. This song in particular doesn't have any questionable lyrics haha)

Laiva by Merta

Syvyydet by Vorna

Armo by Apulanta

Hope you find something you like among these!

Now for the longer answer lol:

For modern pop songs, there's no better place to start than Ram Pam Pam by BESS. The song has become a bit of a Eurovision darling despite the fact that it lost in the Finnish Eurovision national final, the UMK, and thus didn't compete in 2022. The song bears influence of Finnish pop and schlager (in Finnish this genre is called "iskelmä") artist Kaija Koo's songs, which tend to have empowering messages. If you want to listen to Kaija Koo's music, I'd recommend the songs Tinakenkätyttö, Kaunis rietas onnellinen, and Supernaiset.

A song that I have a personal soft spot for is the 80's summer banger Lähtisitkö by Pave Maijanen. It's a corny love song, but that's exactly why it's so great. 🥰 While we're on the topic love songs, there's also Hei Rakas by BEHM, which has very sweet and genuine lyrics and absolutely gorgeous instrumentals. (As a side note, this song is somewhat connected to Eurovision as well, as BEHM performed the song live during UMK 2020 as an interval act).

If you're interested in pop songs that use traditional Finnish instruments in them, I'd recommend both Soutaa Huopaa and Saatilla by the band Elokuu. These songs mix traditional Finnish instruments and the traditional Finnish dance music genre humppa (similar to waltz and foxtrot music) with Finnish schlager music and rap. In that sense, these songs are somewhat similar to Käärijä's Cha Cha Cha, as they mix schlager with rap, though the vibes are completely different. 😂 There's also Henkilökohtaisesti by PMMP, which uses a mix of traditional Finnish instruments and modern genres. As a matter of fact, I'd recommend the entirety of PMMP's album Leskiäidin Tyttäret, where Henkilökohtaisesti is included, as well as another album called Kovemmat Kädet. Though as a fair warning, many of the songs on these albums touch on very heavy topics. There's also the band Lauri Tähkä & Elonkerjuu, which blended traditional folk elements with schlager and rock. Their lyrics also utilise the Finnish Pohjanmaa dialect, adding onto the folk -feel of their music. Most of their songs are love songs, my personal favourites from their catalogue are Pauhaava sydän, Hetkeksi en sulle rupia, and Suudellaan. There's also the song Marmoritaivas by Johanna Kurkela, another very beautiful love song with some more traditional sounding elements to it. Fun fact about Johanna, she's also an ex UMK contestant who didn't make it to Eurovision! Moreover, Suru on kunniavieras by Jenni Vartiainen doesn't necessarily use any traditional instruments, but resembles old Finnish music in terms of specific vocals and some of the lyrics.

Of course I also have to bring up Finnish metal and rock music. Some of my personal favourite metal songs in Finnish are Hengitä by Turmion Kätilöt (who tend to have quite... interesting lyrics), Laiva by Merta and Syvyydet by Vorna. Hengitä and Laiva are both songs about mental illness. For less heavy music, there are the likes of Happoradio and Uniklubi, for specifically all-female acts there are Tiktak and Indica. As a starting point for these bands, I'd recommend Che Guevara by Happoradio, Kaikki mitä mä annoin by Uniklubi, Samantekevää by Tiktak (fun fact this was my absolute favourite song as a kid) and Ikuinen Virta by Indica. I feel slightly obligated to also recommend the songs Joutsenlaulu by Yö and Armo by Apulanta, as both are arguably culturally significant songs. Joutsenlaulu is a reflection on mortality and a song about loss (playing into the typical Finnish artist's obsession with death as an artistic motif), while Armo could be interpreted as a song about the Winter War (a war between the Soviet Union and Finland that took place during the World War II and has shaped Finnish culture immensely). There's also a very beautiful choir cover of the song Armo, called Konflikti (Armo). This version was featured in a movie about Apulanta. Sadly, Joutsenlaulu is not available on Spotify anymore (or any other streaming services for that matter). Funnily enough, Joutsenlaulu was originally meant to be a candidate for the Eurovision song contest of 1984, but the idea was scrapped after its composer came to the realisation that he couldn't possibly keep the length of the song under three minutes. Anyway, here's a link to the song on YouTube, just in case the links above don't work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URDrfH2Rbbg&ab_channel=FinSongs

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tubbytarchia · 2 months

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Hey! Since you're from Estonia (I assume based on your posts) I wanted to ask if you had any Estonian songs to recommend? Any genre etc, I just really love listening to songs of lesser known languages (never heard anything Estonian before! I've heard it's similar to Finnish though? :0)

OHOHO DO I!!! Absolutely, there's SO many really beautiful (and some fun ones) estonian songs that I'd love to share if you're willing to listen!! For a very simple answer, I'll say go listen to the band Trad.Attack ("Saada Vihma" is my favorite). But I'll leave some specific reqs under cut of varying genres so you can take your pick?

Trad.Attack - "Saada Vihma" (Send Rain) "Send rain, oh oh... Towards our land, oh oh... Father of the skies, oh oh... Send rain, oh oh... If only it would rain, my mama coulda' sleep, If it poured, she would doze off quietly. If only it would rain, my papa coulda' sleep, If it poured, he would doze off quietly..." Trad.Attack is ALWAYS my no. 1 recommendation for anyone who wants to listen to funky Estonian music. They incorporate old Estonian folk songs and instruments into ones with modern elements, often with absolutely incredible instrumentals, and every one of them slaps HARD. This one's my personal favorite though. Extremely funky music, sometimes soothing to fall asleep to, sometimes the hypest shit you've heard. A few more of my favorites from them: "Tehke Ruumi" (Make room) (Eng TL is in the video desription) "Sõit" (Drive) (Eng TL in the video description)

Ursula - "Tiffer" An old classic, a staple karaoke song here that still makes me laugh and wanna dance along "I can't hear you, you can't hear me... When you came to me in a skirt I pulled you aside with a bemar and spilled: "Babe, nice legs, nice top!" You replied "huh, me?!"" (Im not translating the rest)

"Mis kuradi kohas me elan?" (What damned place do I live in?) (Eng TL) This one has an older version in an old dialect and a modern rendition too! Both sound really good, very melancholy yet feel-good and hopeful

Metsatöll - "Oma Laulu ei Leia ma üles" (I cannot find my song) (Eng TL) A rock one! From an old and very highly regarded band

5MIINUST, Puuluup - "(nendest) narkootikumidest ei tea me (küll) midagi" (We (really) don't know anything about (these) drugs) (Eng TL) A recent electro pop-sounding one that's been doing well on the radio, but it IS damn catchy. Also an Eurovision song so, go figure. And always extra respect for songs that implement traditional Estonian instruments Mari pokinen - "Õnn ja Arm" (Happiness and Love) (Eng TL) A really pretty one with hauntingly pretty singing, the instrumental kicks in after like a full minute

Mick Pedaja - "Sõba silmale" (Wink of Sleep) This one's really soothing and dear to me and makes me cry "Where, my darling, is the swamp with your pulse? Where you left your wounds locked away? Where, my darling, is the dirt you rest on? May you catch a wink of sleep now..."

Sorry this is a lot lol. There's so many!! I get very giddy about sharing Estonian songs and in kind, I love listening to songs of smaller languages like Latvian and Lithuanian

And yes, Estonian is similar to Finnish lol. Finnish sounds like drunk Estonian to us, and Estonian sounds like drunk Finnish to the Fins

#blabber

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rainydance91 · 6 months

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Estonian ghost stories and folklore

Estonia, with its rich folklore and history, has its share of ghost stories and supernatural legends. Here are a couple of Estonian ghost stories:

The White Lady of Haapsalu Castle: Haapsalu Castle is one of Estonia's most famous historical sites. It's said to be haunted by the White Lady, a ghostly apparition of a noblewoman who died in the castle. She's often seen wandering the corridors and looking out the window

The Flying Dutchman of Vormsi Island: Vormsi Island is known for its maritime history. According to local legend, the ghostly ship of the Flying Dutchman has been spotted around the waters of the island. The spectral ship is said to be a harbinger of storms and bad luck for sailors.

The Church Ghost of Pühalepa: In the village of Pühalepa on Hiiumaa Island, there's a story of a ghostly churchgoer. People have reported hearing footsteps and seeing an apparition in the local church. The ghostly figure is said to be a woman who continues to attend services in the afterlife.

The Cursed Bell of Pöide Church: Pöide Church, located on Saaremaa Island, has a cursed bell. According to legend, the bell was stolen by pirates, and a curse befell those who took it. The bell was eventually returned, but its haunting toll can still be heard at times.

The Devil's Wedding in Vana-Vigala: In Vana-Vigala, there's a legend about a sinister event known as the Devil's Wedding. It's said that every year, the devil himself and all his underlings gather for a macabre wedding ceremony. Anyone who stumbles upon this eerie event may meet a terrible fate.

Estonian folklore is a rich and diverse tapestry of legends, myths, and traditional beliefs that have been passed down through generations. Here are some key aspects of Estonian folklore:

Nature Spirits: Estonian folklore is deeply connected to nature, and various spirits and creatures are believed to inhabit the forests, lakes, and meadows. These include the spirits of trees, water nymphs, and forest elves. It's common to see an appreciation for nature's beauty in Estonian folk tales.

Mythical Creatures: Folklore is filled with mythical creatures, such as the "kratt" or "krabat," which is a supernatural being created through a pact with the devil. Kratts were often used to perform various tasks but could be mischievous and hard to control.

The Kalevipoeg Epic: Estonia's national epic, "Kalevipoeg," is a heroic poem that's often compared to the Finnish epic "Kalevala." It tells the tale of Kalevipoeg, a hero with extraordinary strength, and his adventures in ancient Estonia. The epic is a treasure trove of Estonian mythology and cultural heritage.

The Night of Ancient Lights: "Muistse Valguse Öö" is a tradition in which people gather on the summer solstice to celebrate and connect with ancient Estonian customs. It's a time of bonfires, singing, and paying homage to the country's historical roots.

Runo Songs: Estonia has a strong tradition of runo songs, which are short, rhyming folk songs. These songs are often used to pass down stories and wisdom through music and poetry. The "regilaul" tradition of singing runo songs was recognized by UNESCO as a masterpiece of oral and intangible heritage of humanity.

The Legend of the Saaremaa Women: One popular Estonian legend tells the story of the strong and independent women of Saaremaa, an island off the western coast of Estonia. According to the legend, the men were often away at sea, so the women had to manage the farms and households. This legend reflects the historical role of women in Estonian society.

Witches and Magic: Like many European cultures, Estonia has a tradition of witches and folk magic. Witches, both good and evil, are recurring characters in Estonian folklore. The country's forests and bogs are often depicted as places of magic and mystery.

Estonian folklore is an essential part of the country's cultural identity and has played a role in shaping its national character. It's a world of enchanting stories, mythical creatures, and a deep connection to the land and nature.

All of the explanations I write about may end up being in my book, so when it's completed you can look out for these elements.

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eurovision-revisited · 9 months

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1998 Birmingham - Number 10 - Sari Kaasinen - "Mielessäni"

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Euroviisut 1998 was possibly one of the closest national finals ever to have been held. There were three voting sections: a panel of expert jurors (including our Lord and Saviour Noel Kelehan), a panel of Eurovision fans from OGAE and a televote. All got equal weighting. At the end of the evening, five song were separated by four points.

Three of those songs were tied for third place, including Sari Kaasinen. Her Finnish folk was very popular with OGAE and the televote, the expert panel not so much. Mielessäni (In My Mind) is an odd one. It uses traditional voices in close harmony with a hint of white voice in its regular return to a post-chorus chant. It mixes in a poppier element when that chorus hits. The song is simply about sitting on a beach and moping about a boy. Sara feels like she is missing out.

This mix of ethnic arrangements with more modern instrumentation and sensibilities is very now in Eurovision. Back then it appears not so much. Or at least not enough to convince a panel of musical experts. Here's a fuller version of the song Sari performed for Finnish television a few years later. I can understand why OGAE fans placed this second.

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Sari herself is a folk musician and a founder member of Värttinä, a big name in Finnish folk music with a global fan base. She left Värttinä in 1996 and has since released at least ten albums of her own. This was her only entry into Euroviisut.

#Youtube #esc #esc 1998 #eurovision #eurovision song contest #birmingham #birmingham 1998 #national finals #Euroviisut 1998 #Finland #Sari Kaasinen #Värttinä

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eurovision-facts · 1 year

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Eurovision Fact #177:

The 2007 stage was shaped like the Finnish traditional instrument known as the kantele.

A kantele is a string instrument in the zither family which contains instruments with resonating bodies and varying numbers if strings. These stings can be plucked, strummed, or bowed. The kantele is played via plucking or strumming and it comes in various sizes denoted by number of strings. There are 10-string, 11-string, and even 36-string versions of the instrument. There is also a 5-string version which children are taught to play in schools.

The kantele is the national instrument of Finland and is popular in the genre of folk music.

[Sources]:

Helsinki 2007, Eurovision.tv.

The Finnish Kantele: A Soulful and Humble Instrument, centerforworldmusic.org.

Role of the Five-String Kantele in Finnish Education, Balticpsalteries.com.

#esc facts oc #esc #eurovision #eurovision song contest #eurovision facts oc #esc 2007 #finland #kantele #folk music #finnish instruments

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arda-marred · 7 months

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The races of Men, Elves, Dwarves, Hobbits, Orcs, Valar, and Ents all have a unique set of customs, but their transmission of lore, history, and magic are unified under sharing songs. People sing when paying respect to the dead, recalling historical events, conjuring magic for battle, and partaking in merriment; the very creation of the universe, referred to as the “Ainulindale” (Music of the Ainur), tells how heavenly bodies sang everything into existence. Put simply, music is a participatory way to engage with the world. These specific functions of music raises questions over the inspiration behind the song cultures in Middle-earth. Examining the established books pertaining to Middle-earth reveals a variety of influences such as Norse mythology and Anglo-Saxon story-telling tradition, cultures discussed in previous posts. Of all the cultures that were weaved into Tolkien’s stories however, the region that arguably had the greatest influence on the musical aspects of Middle-earth was Eastern Finland. For hundreds of years, the Finns that resided in the republic of Karelia recited stories that were passed down only through song. People taught lessons, shared history, invoked magic powers, and celebrated life with these musical stories. Not only are these acts depicted in the cultures of Middle-earth, a number of Finnish folk stories inspired major sections of the legendarium. Read more

#Tolkien #J.R.R. Tolkien #Tolkien studies #The Kalevala #Kalevala #Finnish mythology #Tolkien's legendarium #Tolkien influences #Tolkien's inspirations #finnish rune songs

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klenvs3000w24 · 1 month

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10: My Personal Ethics as a Developing Nature Interpreter

I cannot believe we are reaching the end of another year in our university endeavours. It feels like just last week, I was moving into residence, and now here I am three years later with new knowledge, experiences, and relationships. I invite you to join me one last time with this final blog, where I will share my personal ethics as a developing nature interpreter.

Whether for the better or worse, I am quite the strong-minded and sometimes stubborn (shoutout to all my fellow Taurus’) individual. Accordingly, I have lots of beliefs, morals, principles, opinions, etc., about the different aspects of life. However, when it comes to nature, I find my opinions not so ‘opinionated,’ if you will; the pure tranquillity of nature leaves no room for anything but peace.

That being said, I do believe that nature is one of the most incredible creations I have ever learned about. I won’t lie, I do really like having my phone, or being able to drive places, or having a microwave to warm up my food. But all these inventions and technologies are premeditated. I think what separates nature and what makes it so profound is that (in my belief) there is no creator behind it. What were once extremely dense packs of energy have now expanded to our universe, inhabiting tens of billions of persons and species and probably a myriad of unbeknownst aliens and other foreign pieces of matter. To put it plainly, nature is something that came from nothing. This evolution of life and nature serves many lessons for me. It inspires me to do the unimaginable. It serves as a reminder that I am just one person in a world of eight billion. It shows me that growth and change are okay. My admiration for nature is the foundation that motivates what I find to be my responsibilities as a developing nature interpreter.

I think it goes without saying that for many of us in this class, it is our responsibility to take care of the earth; to not litter, turn off the lights, respect wildlife, conserve water, etc. However, this is the bare minimum. I hope to keep myself responsible for more than the minimum, starting with helping others unpack their invisible backpacks, as well as my own invisible backpack. That is, making one’s invisible, unearned assets visible; acknowledge the passport, clothes, visa, tools, etc., that you were born with that give you an advantage in life compared to others (Gallavan, 2005).

Furthermore, I am responsible for doing what I can to make nature interpretation accessible for anyone, regardless of what is in their backpack. At this point in time, I do not think I have the tools needed to truly make nature interpretation accessible for all. However, one day, I would like to contest the significant barriers that prevent minorities from nature interpretation by reducing economic, cultural, communication, knowledge, and fear barriers (Beck et al., 2018).

Looking at this a bit more introspectively, I plan to hold myself responsible to always be curious – to learn from any opportunity that arises. Of course, during classes, when I come across a new term or theory, I will research it until I understand it, but outside of university, including nature, this same principle will apply. This may look like asking mentors questions, googling my curiosities, or putting myself into firsthand experiences. In extension, I would like to be responsible for sharing my knowledge with others, ideally with the gift of provocation, inspiring peers to broaden their interpretive horizons (Beck et al., 2018). The outcome of my responsibilities will be more successful if I follow approaches that are well suited to me as an individual.

I think it is crucial for nature interpretation to be approached through all lenses to get the entire picture: science, art, history, etc. Take for instance, the artistic approach from Finnish groups where they use folk poetry and folk music to convey myths about the world, traditional ways of life, and links to nature (Sahi, 2012). I agree with Sahi (2012) that an interdisciplinary approach to interpreting nature that goes beyond academic, environmental, or economic perceptions is needed. For my contribution to the interdisciplinary lens of nature interpretation, I believe my personal strengths and skills would excel the most in a scientific and research approach.

Beck et al. (2018) highlight several ways in which interpreters can meet visitors’ needs following a framework similar to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs with, for instance, physiological needs at the bottom and self-actualization at the top. I believe that the best level for me to help visitors meet as a nature interpreter would be either knowledge or understanding. The knowledge level refers to providing permission to access resources and data, managing meetings for discussion between interpreters and visitors, and allowing visitors to see practical applications of theories and ideas (Beck et al., 2018). One level above this comes understanding, which has interpreters provide visitors with continued studies of present interests, answers to public inquiries such as regulations, policy, and sciences, and provides experiments and activities for visitors to take home with them (Beck et al., 2018).

Revisiting what approach would be best suited for me, I find there are many similarities in the skills needed for a scientific or research approach compared to helping visitors meet their knowledge or understanding. For instance, researching gaps of knowledge and helping visitors understanding by answering public questions both require a degree of problem-solving skills.

In summary, my ethics as a developing nature interpreter are built on the belief the creation of our world is the most insane ‘invention’ yet. That I am responsible for helping others and myself continue to unpack their invisible backpacks, reduce barriers to interpretation, and to always be curious. Finally, the approach that is best suited to me will follow a research and scientific avenue to help others achieve knowledge and understanding of nature.

Thank you to everyone for sharing their thoughts throughout the semester – they have provided me new insight and perspectives on the various prompts. Further, thank you for taking the time to read my ideas, and I hope you have received some form of pleasure or benefit from doing so.

All the best,

Kiera

References

Beck, L., Cable, T. T., & Knudson, D. M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. Sagamore-Venture.

Gallavan, N. P. (2005). Helping teachers unpack their "invisible knapsacks". Multicultural Education, 13(1), 36. https://go-gale-com.subzero.lib.uoguelph.ca/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=guel77241&id=GALE|A137921591&v=2.1&it=r&sid=AONE&asid=9fe2f151

Sahi, V. (2012). Spiritual values of protected areas of Europe: Using folk traditional music to communicate the sacredness of nature in Finland. Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, 129-132. https://www.silene.ong/en/documentation-centre/spiritual-values-of-protected-areas-of-europe-workshop-proceedings#Proceedings_Spiritual%20Values_PAs_Europe.pdf

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lageografiademicamino · 1 year

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UMK 2023 Song Review - Käärijä

The hype is very real around Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu (UMK), the Finnish national selection for Eurovision and the race to Liverpool continues with ..... I don’t know what this is actually!

Käärijä - Cha Cha Cha

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Most of Finns had never heard of Käärijä before the artist release of UMK23 a month back. Including me. So zero expectations. I didn’t know the language he was gonna perform, I maybe expected some dancy sounding tune based on the title. However, he described his song that “this track combines all three big Finnish loves together: party, pop and heavy music”. Should have known something crazy will be coming up ever since I read he’s a ESC Verka Serduschka fan (Ukraine 2007).

Cha Cha Cha gets your attention from the first second untill the last one. You know right away that you have something in here. The song kind of starts with rap, there’s techno sounds also, the darkness reminds me of Hatari (Iceland 2019) the chorus is aggressive almost violent but catchy and memorable as hell. The music video is a perfect fit to this! Be prepared to be knocked out by some Cha Cha Cha!

There’s no one like this in UMK or in Eurovision. Then when you think you’re figured out the song everything turns upside down and the song becomes this pop-folk banger. I can hear Verka here actually! A definite late night dancefloor hit in a Finnish bar! The ending is explosive, just pure fireworks and you’re like WTF did I just hear.

There’s a wide selection of genres here, just take your pick while trying to put this guy into one box.

Käärijä likes to confuse people and traditional sounds aren’t his thing. This is definitely clear! Cha Cha Cha will surely test boundaries, push some people away as it will cheer up and encourage others. This will surely cause a reaction and sometimes that’s all it’s needed from a decent hit and Eurovision song. In the end lovers count more than the haters. This is by far the most played and watched UMK entry this year in all the platforms. Foreigner ESC bloggers have been mostly excited about this and highlighting how Finnish language fits these hard sounds perfectly.

I can definitely see this advancing to ESC (I don’t think even a bad UMK staging might stop people from voting for this!) and put my money on it that Europeans will this time around understand a piece of Finnish crazyness!

What do you think of the fifth UMK23 track and would you vote for Käärijä’s Cha Cha Cha to go all the way to Liverpool? UMK final takes place on February 25th!

#UMK2023 #uudenmusiikinkilpailu #uuden musiikin kilpailu #eurovision #Eurovison Song Contest #eurovisionsongcontest #euroviisut #eurovision 2023 #songreview #song review #yle #Finnish Music #finnish #finland #Suomi

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burlveneer-music · 9 months

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Oiro Pena - Puna - spiritual jazz from Finland, new album out today

Oiro Pena is a Finnish jazz collective helmed by prolific composer Antti Vauhkonen. Their forthcoming album, Puna, recorded in bedrooms, studios and other salubrious locations around Helsinki during 2022, is a mix of lo-fi spiritual jazz, experimental, and avant-garde music forms. It includes four vocal tracks recorded with Merikukka Kiviharju, which feature both original lyrics and those sourced from traditional Finnish folk songs. Vauhkonen first attracted attention as saxophonist in the group Soft Power. He then launched Oiro Pena as solo multi-instrumentalist with two self-titled, astral, outsider jazz 10” EPs, released by Ultraääni in 2019, limited to 200 copies, since repressed three times and seriously in demand. With a background in electronic music, Vauhkonen explains his transition into avant-garde / spiritual jazz: "It came from Krautrock first, I started listening to Can, and searched through all the psychedelic German rock bands. There was a lot of jazzier elements there, horns and saxophones, I think it came from there, and then I found Miles Davis and John Coltrane (and) started listening to the early Sun Ra material." Puna features the interplay of vocalist Merikukka Kiviharju (Fat Chance, Jazzgangsters) on tracks 'Puna', Kaiju Kaiija', 'Kuinka Kukaan' and 'Calamity Caravan', matching with the intensity of Johannes Sarjasto’s saxophone, and Staffan Södergård’s piano. The album, like previous releases is built around Vauhkonen’s propulsive drumming and Philip Holm’s upright bass that provides the band with its forward momentum. Johannes Sarjasto’s flute, so much a part of previous Oiro Pena group recordings, also features on this release. Antti Vauhkonen: Drums Johannes Sarjasto: Saxophone, Flute Philip Holm: Double Bass Staffan ''Wolf'' Södergård: Piano Merikukka Kiviharju: Vocals Mastered By: Noah Mintz at Lacquer Channel Mastering in Toronto. Artwork: Riina Tanskanen Layout: Steve Lewin

#oiro pena #jazz #spiritual jazz #we are busy bodies #2023 #female vocal #Bandcamp

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tuulikki · 6 months

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https://www.tumblr.com/tuulikki/733369731375104000/my-fellow-americans-you-can-just-put-us-flags-its

I've been wondering about your Finnish url ever since learning that you're an English speaking American, and now that you don't have any roots in Finland, I'm super curious. Where does it come from?

Sorry about that time I just started to talk to you in Finnish :D

Haha, no worries! The short answer is: I’m a nerd.

The long answer…

When I was a kid, I was super into any mythology I could get my hands on. And I was a young Tolkien nerd who found out The Kalevala and its poetical style were hugely influential on Tolkien’s worldbuilding. So of course I had to read it. And, as a weird folk music kid, I also fell sideways into any music featuring kantele, which was a gateway drug into other Finnish folk and folk-y music (Värttinä, Pekko Käppi, Hedningarna’s “Karelia Visa” album, etc.).

I’d only lived in the USA and Asia at that age, and most of the “mythology” books I’d ever been exposed to were Greek, Roman, Egyptian, and some machismo-heavy Norse stuff. All very common and very easy to find in the kiddie section of my school library. Finnish mythology and folklore was the first time I had to work a little to learn. I started just with The Kalevala (and copious footnotes), then the internet, later a Finn on LiveJournal who would straight-up translate lyrics/verse, and then puttering around to the local Nordic museum.

I have a lot of nostalgia for that as my first foray into what was, for me, something that stands at the transition point between my being a Mythology Kid™️ and being a more adult-shaped-creature who had to consider mythology, not as an inert curiosity and kiddie hobby, but as one aspect of traditions that exist in relation to real things like nationalism, identity, Romanticism, ethnography, and all that.

So, with that history, when I set out to make a tumblr username, I picked a name I knew from The Kalevala, because literally every other name from stories or myth I knew or could think of was already taken.

A further little joy was that I also loved the Moomintroll books as a kid in the 90s. And some kids in my neighbourhood in Hong Kong had access to the TV show (I don’t remember how) so I got properly scared of the animated Groke. So now, knowing about Tuulikki Pietilä and Tove Jansson, I have a further pleasant coincidence from my already very coincidence- and happenstance-heavy username.

And I do have to agree with Tolkien, in the end: Finnish is a fucking cool language. People are always like “ohh French is so romantic!” and sure maybe but is French cool. I’m not a linguist, but I know the number of grammatical cases a European language has is directly proportional to how hard it fucks.

I… hope that’s an answer that makes sense 😅

#personal shit ahoy

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mywifeleftme · 4 months

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255: Amorphis // Elegy

Elegy Amorphis 1996, Spinefarm

A woman I was sleeping with once asked me while we were lying in bed in the darkness if there was any poetry I could recite from memory. Reader, I had nothing, so I ended up sleepily intoning these words:

Truly they lie, they talk utter nonsense. Those who sing music Reckon that the kantele Was fashioned by a god Out of a great pike’s shoulders, From a water dog’s hooked bones… It was molded from sorrow. Its belly out of hard days, Its soundboard from endless woes, Its strings gathered from torments And its pegs from other ills. Truly they lie, they talk utter nonsense.

Then she wept. I’d mentioned the words came from the Kanteletar, a Finnish collection of traditional folk poems collected in 1840, but I wonder if the reaction might’ve been different if I’d gone on to say that I’d learnt them from “My Kantele,” a song from idiosyncratic death metal band Amorphis’s third album Elegy. (Possibly not; she was the sensitive type.)

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Amorphis is probably my favourite metal band of the ‘90s, moving over the course of four albums and a coupla EPs from a hoarse death-doom croak to an uncategorizable psychedelic smear of folk, prog, melodic death, and goth rock. Their adolescent fascination with fantasy warfare led them to the deeper well of folklore in all its silliness and strange wisdom; they infused their wintry stomp with the druggy Orientalist prog rave-ups of fellow Finns Kingston Wall. It always seemed like those moments when they found themselves in the zeitgeist were not the result of chasing trends but a happy accident of their own path briefly intersecting the moment, as when Elegy’s bold embrace of keyboards and alternating clean and growled vocals anticipated the Gothenburg melodic death sound that was about to take over the extreme metal scene.

Elegy crunches (“Against Widows”) and Elegy thrashes (“On Rich and Poor”), but mostly it swirls, with new addition Kim Rantala's watery keys and lead guitarist Esa Holopainen’s increasingly Floydian selection of tones lapping over the album’s burly architecture. The selected Kanteletar poems that serve as lyrics tend toward mournfulness, and both growler Tomi Koivusaari and debuting clean vocalist Pasi Koskinen give appropriately panged readings, but as with a lot of genuine folk songs most of the musical settings have a playful zest. It’s an album rife with lengthy, dramatic outros (“The Orphan,” “Weeper on the Shore,” “Elegy”), the band finding a stirring melody and riding it to satisfaction, and if their sudden fascination with Eastern scales and the sitar is geographically inexplicable (why not a kantele on a song called “My Kantele”?) the songs that go that way generally rip.

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There’s a fair amount of cheese to be found on Elegy, but even nearly 20 years since I first heard it as a teen, I find I’m able to take most of it in the spirit it was intended. Elegy’s still kind of way out there on its own as metal goes, doing its magic on a frozen stream that sparkles under the stars.

255/365

#amorphis #relapse records #finnish metal #death metal #prog metal #'90s music #'90s metal #kantele #folk metal #doom metal #kingston wall #music review #vinyl record

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randomvarious · 9 months

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Today's compilation:

Finnischer Tango: Tule Tanssimaan 1998 Tango / Finnish Folk

Wow, you really thought that I wasn't ever going to cover Finnish tango, didn't you? And that's only because you didn't even know that it ever existed in the first place, right? Well, guess what? Finland apparently *really* loves this traditional South American folk dance music. Tango reached the country in 1913 and it's been sewn into their musical fabric ever since, and not as some cute niche, but as one of the nation's most popular genres, overall. You probably wouldn't think tango to be part and parcel of the Finnish soul and experience, but it actually very much has been for multiple generations now.

And tango's unlikely popularity in Finland wasn't the product of some significant South American diaspora either. Some traveling musicians just started playing it there, and by the 40s, it had been developed into a dominant component of the country's very own music charts. Plus, since 1985, there's been a very popular annual tango festival in the town of Seinäjoki too, which is said to draw about 2% of the country's entire population. All pretty fascinating, no?

But this collection of tunes here from the Munich-based Trikont label also isn't your typical Finnish tango CD either—if ever there was such a thing—because, across the many genres and historic scenes that Trikont covers, their specialty is basically what amounts to musical archaeology: they dig *really* deep for those obscure fossils that no one else seems to have really uncovered or brought to light before. And I am someone who is as wet behind the ears as literally anyone can be when it comes to Finnish tango, but if you're someone who considers themselves a bit of a FINtango fiend, then this appears to be some essential listening for you.

Ultimately, for me though, I really don't enjoy listening to much traditional folk music of any kind, and that now includes Finnish tango as well. But if it sounds interesting to you, this thing has tracks on it that span all the way from 1915 up until 1996, so it'll allow you to get a taste of how this uniquely Finnish phenomenon has been developed and shaped over very many years, and with a slate of tracks that don't seem to have been on many people's radar at the time when they were originally recorded too.

No highlights.

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thelatvianblog · 8 months

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Liv (Livonian) Traditional Culture

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In modern-day Latvia, a handful of descendants of a dying ethnic group – the Livs – are a small, yet tenacious group of enthusiasts of their cultural heritage. They take pride in their ancestry and over the past decades have, in various ways, sought to promote public awareness of their culture, language and lifestyle. This has been done through popular folkloric music, also the dissemination of information about their culture and history via festivals and camps, literary publications, websites and focused research of the past. Their efforts have met with some success – there has been a renewed interest in the Livs and public and state interest in the fate of this ethnic group has been piqued and acted on.

The Livs (or Livonians), are one of two indigenous ethnic groups of the territory of present-day Latvia and Estonia. The language of the Livs comes from a different language group to the Baltic language that the Latvians (and Lithuanians) speak. Livonian is from the Finno-Ugric language group (related to Estonian, Finnish and Hungarian) and sadly it is now deemed extinct, as the last native speaker of this language passed away in 2013. The Livs have almost entirely assimilated into the larger ethnic groups in this region. Yet the blood-line of the Livonians continues in many Latvians (and Estonians) and the language is still spoken as a second language by a handful of Liv descendants, linguists and enthusiasts. One of the most active Liv linguists, Valts Ernštreits, now a researcher at Tartu University, Estonia, has for decades been promoting Liv culture and language.

Today, around 200 people still identify themselves as Livs and are proud to cultivate their cultural heritage. Annual summer language camps are organised for children to learn their ancestral language, Livonian culture has received significant support from the state and a Livonian festival is held in summer in the northern village of Mazirbe in Latvia. Livonian language courses are available to university students studying Finno-Ugric linguistic studies in Rīga and Tartu, Estonia. Livonian music and culture has become more accessible to the public with the active and focused activities of the Stalti family and Estonian-Livonian band Tuļļi Lum who have recorded folk music in Livonian.

The Liv language, although no longer spoken as a native language, has, over the centuries, left its mark on the Latvian language. It is most certainly closely related to modern Estonian and Finnish, but there are a number of words in Latvian which are of Livonian origin. The stress on the first syllable in Latvian, is a language feature that comes from Livonian. The popular Latvian song “Pūt, vējiņi” stems from a medieval Liv wedding song.

The 12 Liv fishing villages that are located on the northern Kurzeme coast, though now rarely inhabited by descendents of Livs, are now popular spots for holiday homes, and some of the old, still unrenovated homes are a legacy to what once was. This area is called the Liv cultural space and one of the villages, Mazirbe, has a House of Liv Culture which is worth a visit to learn more about the heritage of this ethnic group. It is part of the heritage of Latvia and its preservation is just as important.

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#livonia #lībieši #latvia #culture #history #Youtube

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