Music of Finland
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The music of Finland can be roughly divided into folk music, classical and contemporary art music, and contemporary popular music.
The folk music of
In the field of classical and contemporary art music, Finland has produced exceptional numbers of musicians and composers.
Contemporary popular music includes a
Folk music
The two major traditions of folk music in Finland are Kalevala and Nordic folk music or pelimanni (North Germanic spelman, "player of music").
Kalevala
Värttinä is a modern group more focused on Kalevala singing traditions and the kantele.
Pelimanni
A form of rhyming sleighride singing called rekilaulu also became popular in the 17th century. Despite opposition from most of the churches in Finland, rekilaulu remained popular and is today a common element in pop songs.[citation needed] Since the 1920s, several popular Finnish performers have used rekilaulu as an integral part of their repertoire. Early pioneers in this field of pop rekilaulu included Arthur Kylander, while Erkki Rankaviita, Kuunkuiskaajat, and Pinnin Pojat sustained the tradition.
Early in the 20th century, the region of Kaustinen became a center of innovation for Pelimanni music. Friiti Ojala and Antti Järvelä were fiddlers of the period. Konsta Jylhä and the other members of Purpuripelimannit (formed in 1946) became perhaps the most influential group of this period. Well-known Finnish folk music groups of today in the Kaustinen tradition include JPP, Frigg (although part Norwegian), and Troka. Another important folk musician of today is the accordionist Maria Kalaniemi.
Common instruments today include trumpets, horns, and whistle. Important virtuosos include Leena Joutsenlahti, Teppo Repo and Virpi Forsberg. [citation needed]
In the 20th century, influences from modern music and dances such as
.Sami music
The
Classical and art music
Classical music
In the 18th century, public concerts were established in
In 1874, the Society for Culture and Education (Kansanvalistusseura) was founded to provide opportunities for artistic expression, beginning with the
In the 1890s, Finnish
Alongside Sibelius, national romanticism sprouted other composers who contributed in the formation of a distinct Finnish style of music. Heino Kaski was a composer of small chamber music pieces; Erkki Melartin's output includes six symphonies; Yrjö Kilpinen composed solo songs, as well as Leevi Madetoja, and Toivo Kuula. In the 1930s composers including Uuno Klami and Yrjö Kilpinen rose to popularity. Kilpinen's approach was somewhat nationalistic, whereas Klami had Karelian influences, leaning towards French models.
Finland had a lively classical music scene. Composers were supported by conductors such as
The opening of the new
Opera
Aulis Sallinen started a new wave of Finnish opera in the 1970s with The Horseman and The Red Line. The Red Line earned productions in Moscow, London, and New York City. Along with Sallinen's stage works, Joonas Kokkonen's opera The Last Temptations contributed to that era's rise of Finnish opera music. More recent major operas by Finnish composers include among others Kaija Saariaho's L'Amour de loin and Adriana mater as well as Olli Kortekangas's Isän tyttö ("Daddy's Girl").
Since the 1960s, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra's reputation as one of the most important Scandinavian orchestras was cemented by conductor Osmo Vänskä; this helped to cause a boom in opera's popularity during the 1980s, rescuing a form increasingly seen as archaic elsewhere. The Savonlinna Opera Festival reopened in 1967.
Martti Talvela, Karita Mattila and Jorma Hynninen became international opera stars, while composers like Kalevi Aho, Olli Kortekangas, Paavo Heininen, Aulis Sallinen, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Atso Almila and Ilkka Kuusisto composed successful operas.
Contemporary art music
The first wave of post-classical music in Finland came about in the 1920s with modernists Aarre Merikanto,
The forming of the Ears Open! society in 1977
In the 21st century, the modernist movement waned, but is still represented by composers such as Veli-Matti Puumala and Lotta Wennäkoski.[9][10] Juhani Nuorvala is a rare minimalist, while Osmo Tapio Räihälä and Sebastian Fagerlund lean more towards post-modernism.[11][12]
Performance of contemporary art music blossomed in Finland, with specialized groups including
Experimental
Classical elements and mysterious soundscapes characterize the compositions of Finnish film score composer Diana Ringo. Popular singer Anna Eriksson creates experimental music and film scores.
Popular music
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Iskelmä
Iskelmä (coined directly from the German word
From the late 1960s,
The annual Eurovision Song Contest is avidly followed in Finland and in 2006 Finland won with the melodic heavy rock band Lordi.
Like Finnish music in general, iskelmä is written mostly in minor keys. The melodies have a distinguishable Finnish "flavour" that is somewhat related to Russian and Italian melodies and harmonies although Scandinavian and Anglo-American influence can also be heard.
Iskelmä music is essentially dance music, and it is mostly performed on dancing stages and halls around the country. The best known and perhaps most loved and respected dance is the
Iskelmä is typically non-urban music and its greatest popularity is situated to the countryside and smaller cities.
Traditionally accordion has been the major instrument in iskelmä music and it is still played, but has in most cases been replaced by guitar, electric piano and synthesizer. These, with drums, electric bass and occasional use of saxophone form the basic instrumentation of iskelmä.
Rock music
Rock arrived in Finland in the 1950s. Founded in the 1960s,
During the 1970s, progressive rock groups
The
In the 1980s, most favoured artists were punkish
In the early 1990s Finnish rock parody group the
Finnish bands tend to write lyrics in English to broaden their audience. However, 1990s bands such as
A band that enjoyed critical and commercial success in the 2000s is
Heavy metal
Finland is known for heavy metal acts, including from the death metal, black metal, doom metal, folk metal, power metal, and symphonic metal subgenres.
Finland hosts a strong underground doom metal scene more focused on the depressive mood of the genre, evoking intense grief.[14] The bands play with slow tempos and melodic tones, creating an atmosphere of darkness and melancholia.[14][15] This scene was kick-started by Rigor Mortis (which, due to an older US band with the same name, changed their name to Spiritus Mortis), which originated in 1987.[16][17] Notable bands include Reverend Bizarre,[18] Minotauri,[17] Dolorian,[14] Shape of Despair,[14] Thergothon,[14] Skepticism[14] and Unholy.[19]
In the later 1990s the symphonic metal group Apocalyptica played Metallica cover songs as cello quartets and sold half a million records worldwide. The recently retired Timo Rautiainen & Trio Niskalaukaus were one of Finland's most popular metal acts in the early 2000s, after leaving late 1980s – early 1990s cult band Lyijykomppania. Children's power metal band Hevisaurus became popular in Finland.
Finnish metal bands attained worldwide success within the underground metal scene. Examples of such bands include Stratovarius and Sonata Arctica, and Children of Bodom.
Nightwish is considered a pioneer of symphonic metal that mixes in power metal and gothic metal and had Tarja Turunen, a classical soprano, as its vocalist until 2005. The band received platinum and gold certifications for its albums sales in many countries and became the third best selling Finnish artist. The band was nominated for awards and took home 11 Emma-gala awards, the Echo award, the Mtv Europe music award, the World music award and the Metal Storm award. In 2000 the band participated in the Finnish qualification for the Eurovision Song Contest, reaching second place.
Kotiteollisuus was one of Finland's most popular bands, producing one platinum and several gold albums and winning Emma-awards in 2003 and 2005 for best metal record ("Helvetistä itään") and best DVD ("Kotiteollisuus"), respectively.
Finnish hard rock band Lordi won the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest with a record 292 points, Finland's first-ever victory. They submitted "Hard Rock Hallelujah", and they celebrated their win with a free concert in Market Square in Helsinki, on 26 May 2006. They broke the world record for karaoke singing with about 80,000 voices singing "Hard Rock Hallelujah".[20] Lordi was one of the most watched competitors of the Eurovision Song Contest internationally,[21] because the band aroused positive media interest, while some foreigners accused Lordi of satanism.[22]
From the beginning of 2000, HIM reached greater sales and more international success than any other band to come from Finland. Going gold with their first official American release Dark Light,[23][24] of which two singles, "Wings of a Butterfly" and "Killing Loneliness", reached number one and two, respectively, on the Finnish Singles Chart.[25][26] The former cracked the top ten in the UK.[27] Several Finnish bands have followed the lead of that band; Entwine, Lullacry, and Poisonblack are such bands.
Heavy metal group Blind Channel finished sixth in Eurovision Song Contest 2021 with their song "Dark Side".
Other well-known metal bands are Amorphis, Beherit, Impaled Nazarene, Throne of Chaos, Turisas and Ensiferum.[28]
Hip-hop
Finland hip-hop bands emerged during the late 1990s to early 2000s. One of the first Finnish Hip Hop records with lyrics in English was recorded at Vernissa (C) Manus / (P) Johanna Kustannus 1991 by Damn The Band. Later Finland offered
Today rap music is one of the major genres of Finnish pop-music and there are many artists, who have reached wide popularity. Still it can be said, that rap-scene is primarily an underground-movement. But even independent artists such as ASA with often political and critical lyrics are quite popular. ASA's "leijonaa mä metsästän"-album was the third on Finnish albumchart in 2005. Finnish rap-artists, such as
In 2023 hip-hop artist Käärijä represented Finland at the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 and placed first in the televote.
Pop music
In the 1990s, a popular new trend was so-called Eurodance music and this style also had Finnish followers, many of which however are today quite forgotten. A couple of bands also wrote their lyrics in English, but didn't make it on the international music market. To mention few artists, there were Hausmylly, Aikakone and Movetron.
Some contemporary Pop/Rock singers who emerged in the 2000s, such as Maija Vilkkumaa, Sanni Kurkisuo, Jenni Vartiainen, Anssi Kela, Irina, Chisu, Anna Puu, Anna Eriksson, Hanna Pakarinen and Antti Tuisku, and pop rock groups such as Scandinavian Music Group, and PMMP, are popular in Finland. They all primarily sing in Finnish, which may contribute to their relatively low international profile. Antti Tuisku has become the most popular and best-selling artist to emerge from Idols, the Finnish version of Pop Idol.[29][30] Erika Vikman is another popular electropop singer who achieved wide recognition in Finland with her 2020 hit "Syntisten pöytä" (The Sinner's Table). Poets of the Fall is an example of a Finnish pop/rock band that sings in English.
Since the late 1990s and early 2000s, female artists have become more visible as performers and songwriters. Singer-songwriter Chisu is a good example of this phenomenon penning songs that can be considered classics, along with Eppu Normaali, Tuomari Nurmio.
A number of iskelmä, rock- and pop-songs attained classic status, outlasting "hits of today". Although the differences between pop, rock and iskelmä are notable in social signification – stereotypically iskelmä is music for older and rural people, while rock and pop are for youth and urbanites–the boundaries between these genres are not always clear. This seems to be true especially in popular songs that are endlessly performed in original form, or rearranged into new musical idioms and dialects.
Contemporary folk music
The Finnish roots revival began in the 1960s. The Ilmajoki Music Festival and Kaustinen Folk Music Festival became musical centers for the country and helped revitalize traditional Finnish folk music. Runosong was revitalized by a new generation of performers, including Reijo Kela, Kimmo Pohjonen and Heikki Laitinen, who created a kalevala performance art piece.
The International Folk Music Festival, established in 1968 in Kaustinen. It became a major event in the popularization of Finnish folk. The 1970s saw further revival of Finnish folk music, including artists like Konsta Jylhä, JPP and Värttinä. Jylhä and his Purppuripelimannit band did the most to popular the scene.[31]
Some non-Sami artists, including
The Finnish bagpipe, the säkkipilli, though previously extinct, was revived by folk musicians such as Petri Prauda.
In the 2000s, an underground-movement of new folk music came out. Notables include artists such as Joose Keskitalo,
Another new phenomenon of the 2000s is suomireggae. With Finnish lyrics and moral and spiritual content artists such as Soul-Captain Band, Kapteeni Ä-ni, Jukka Poika and Raappana have attained wider popularity.
Underground scenes of various genres are lively, while many bands and artists defy genre boundaries. A good example is underground rap artist ASA (formerly known as MC Avain), who has used folk artists as the accompanying band.
Electronic music
In electronic music,
The pioneer of Finnish
In experimental electronica, noise and ambient electronic music, Finland is represented by Petri Kuljuntausta, Pink Twins, Ihokas, Rihmasto, Nemesis, Niko Skorpio, Dystopia, Ozone Player, Winterplanet, Corporate 09, Moya81, and Outer Space Alliance.
Jazz
Finnish jazz imitated foreign models until the 1960s when a new generation started to combine American tradition and Finnish folk influences. Artists included Esa Pethman, Heikki Sarmanto, Eero Koivistoinen and Henrik Otto Donner. Edward Vesala's and Paroni Paakkunainen's Soulset band managed to succeed in international contests and festivals. The first Finnish jazz festival, Pori Jazz, launched in 1966.
In the 1970s, musicians began to mix jazz,
In the 1980s and 1990s, Finnish jazz became more internationally recognized.
After the 1990s, Finnish jazz evolved in different directions.
Military music
- Kaartin Soittokunta(The Guards' Band), Helsinki. 40 musicians + 2 conductors.
- Panssarisoittokunta (The Armour Band), Hämeenlinna. 20 mus. + 1 cond.
- Laivaston Soittokunta (The Navy Band), Turku. 20 mus. + 1 cond.
- Ilmavoimien Soittokunta (The Air Force Band), Jyväskylä. 20 mus. + 1 cond.
- Savon Sotilassoittokunta (The Band of Savo), Mikkeli. 20 mus. + 1 cond.
- Oulun Sotilassoittokunta (The Military Band of Oulu), Oulu. 20 mus. + 1 cond.
- Rakuunasoittokunta (The Dragoons Band), Lappeenranta. 14 mus. + 1 cond.
- Pohjanmaan Sotilassoittokunta (The Osthrobothnian Military Band), Vaasa. 14 mus. + 1 cond.
- Satakunnan Sotilassoittokunta (The Satakunta Military Band); Niinisalo. 14 mus. + 1 cond.
- Karjalan Sotilassoittokunta (The Karelian Military Band); Kontioranta. 14 mus. + 1 cond.
- Kainuun Sotilassoittokunta (The Kainuu Military Band); Kajaani. 14 mus. + 1 cond.
- Lapin Sotilassoittokunta (The Military Band of Lapland); Rovaniemi. 14 mus. + 1 cond.
A large military band consisting only of conscripts with professional conductors is called The Conscript Band of the Finnish Defence Forces. Its strength is about 60–70 musicians. It operates in Lahti and is concentrated on making marching shows and large-scale concerts.
Further listening
A 3-CD box set entitled Beginner's Guide to Scandinavia was released by Nascente/
Radio stations
- Yle, The Finnish state broadcasting corporation
- Commercial
See also
- List of Finnish singers
- List of Finnish musicians
- List of Finnish jazz musicians
- List of best-selling music artists in Finland
- List of years in Finnish music
- Culture of Finland
- Scandinavian death metal
- Sami music
- Provinssirock
- Pori Jazz Festival
- April Jazz Festival
References
- ^ Shanks, Dawn K. (1 October 2008). "Start with Finnish". Culture Week. Archived from the original on 8 July 2011.
- ^ Sharanya, Sumith (12 December 2018). "Life in Finland – Finland's government– For last 80 years pregnant women". Knowdworld. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
- ^ The Choir – YL Male Voice Choir Archived 8 June 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Member orchestras". 6 November 2007. Archived from the original on 6 November 2007.
- ^ Ellison, Cori (28 July 2002). "MUSIC; Nurturing Operatic Talent With a Kind Of Tough Love". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
- ^ "Fimic – Suomalaisen musiikin tiedotuskeskus". 11 February 2013. Archived from the original on 11 February 2013.
- ISBN 9781576470190. Retrieved 15 December 2017 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b "Fimic – Suomalaisen musiikin tiedotuskeskus". 11 February 2013. Archived from the original on 11 February 2013.
- ^ "Fimic – Suomalaisen musiikin tiedotuskeskus". 11 February 2013. Archived from the original on 11 February 2013.
- ^ "Fimic – Suomalaisen musiikin tiedotuskeskus". 20 October 2009. Archived from the original on 20 October 2009.
- ^ "Nuorvala, Juhani (*1961): Fennica Gehrman – Finnish sheet music". Fennicagehrman.fi. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
- ^ "Räihälä, Osmo Tapio – Re:new music". 11 February 2013. Archived from the original on 11 February 2013.
- ^ C.G. (11 October 2017). "Explaining the Finnish love of tango". The Economist. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f DerRozzengarten. "Swallow The Sun interview (10/2005)". Metal Storm. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ^ Vladimir Kozlov. "Russian doom, Finnish-style". The Moscow News. Archived from the original on 10 January 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ^ DerRozzengarten. "SPIRITUS MORTIS". MusicMight. Archived from the original on 10 January 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ^ a b "Spiritus Mortis interview". Fémforgács. 6 October 2009. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ^ Marsicano, Dan. "Best Finnish Heavy Metal Bands". About.com. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ^ "The Second Ring of Power – CD&DVD edition coming in October". Peaceville Records's Official site. Retrieved 6 January 2013.
- ^ "Lordi Kauppatorilla uusitaan yöllä". Mesta.net (in Finnish). 27 May 2006. Archived from the original on 21 March 2008. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
- ISBN 978-951-0-32584-1.
- ^ "Oikeuskanne vireillä Lordia vastaan Ateenassa". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 19 May 2006. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
- ^ "BPI – Award: HIM – Dark Light". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
- ^ "HIM myi kultaa USA:ssa". MTV Uutiset (in Finnish). 28 September 2006. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
- ^ "HIM – Wings Of A Butterfly" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
- ^ "HIM – Killing Loneliness" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
- ^ "HIM brittilistan top 10:een". MTV Uutiset (in Finnish). 19 September 2005. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
- ^ Patterson2016-05-17T10:14:00Z, Dayal (17 May 2016). "10 of the best metal bands from Finland". Metal Hammer Magazine. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Minna Nyrhinen-blazquez (November 2017). "Antti Tuisku on kovatuloisin Idols-artisti". Aamu Lehti.
- ^ "Antti Tuisku oli todellinen Idols-voittaja". IltaSanomat. 28 July 2005.
- ^ "Finnish music". Finnish Music Information Center. Archived from the original on 23 November 2005. Retrieved 27 September 2005.
Other sources
- Henriksson, Juha. "Suomalaisen jazzin vuosisata" Viitattu 27 May 2014.
- Henriksson, Juha. "A short history of Finnish jazz" Viitattu 27 May 2014.
- Cronshaw, Andrew. "New Runes". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East, pp 91–102. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0
Further reading
- ISBN 952-92-0564-3).
External links
- Finnish Music Information Center
- pHinnWeb: Finnish electronic music
- Rockdata: Finnish Music Scene
- Jazz Finland
- Songs of Finland – A Collection of Finnish Popular Music on CD.
- Kaamos – A webzine dedicated to Finnish metal and rock.
- 50 Alltime greatest finnish albums – a selection of Finnish popular music albums by professional critics
- Finland longs for happier songs – An Article about Finnish Popular Music