- Loituma
Infobox Musical artist
Name = Loituma
Img_capt =
Background = group_or_band
Alias = Jäykkä Leipä
Origin = flagicon|FinlandHelsinki ,Finland
Genre = folk
Years_active = 1989 – present
Label =NorthSide
URL =
Current_members =Sari Kauranen Anita Lehtola-Tollin Timo Väänänen Hanni-Mari Autere
Past_members =Sanna Kurki-Suonio Tellu Paulasto Loituma is a Finnish
quartet whose members combine the Finnish vocal tradition with the sounds of thekantele (Finnishzither ). Loituma were selected Ensemble of the Year at the1997 Kaustinen Folk Music Festival .History
Loituma’s initial incarnation was in the
autumn of1989 as a septet called "Jäykkä Leipä" ("Stiff Bread"), born in theSibelius Academy ’s Folk music department. The original lineup included singersSanna Kurki-Suonio and Tellu Paulasto, who later left forSweden to joinHedningarna .Over the years, the group has persistently followed its own musical path, applying different musical influences to its music. It has dived into musical streams of diverse origins. One of the cornerstones of Finnish
folk music is the art of singing: stories and feelings are best conveyed through this instrument. Loituma's songs convey the Finnish heritage, aided in the background by Martti Pokela and Toivo Alaspää. Another cornerstone of Loituma's art is a Finnish folk instrument calledkantele , which is featured in varied ways in their recordings.Loituma members compose or arrange the tunes by themselves, often using
improvisation . Lyrics come from many sources, two main traditional sources are theKalevala , the national epic of Finland, and theKanteletar . The lyrics are in Finnish.Band members
* Sari Kauranen — kanteles, vocals
* Anita Lehtola-Tollin — vocals, 5-string kantele
* Timo Väänänen, [http://www.timo.maanite.fi Home page] — kanteles, vocals
* Hanni-Mari Autere, [http://www.etno.net/index.php?id=65&la=en&kukaid=70 Etno.net] , [http://etno.net/index.php?id=63&la=en&kokoelma=kle&kiekko=53 Solo music] — vocals,fiddle , 5-string kantele, altorecorder ,double bass , Lapindrum Discography
* "Loituma" (released in Finland in
1995 ) / "Things of Beauty " (released in theUnited States in1998 )
* "Kuutamolla" (released in Finland in 1998) / "In the Moonlight" (released in United States in1999 )ee also
*"
Ievan Polkka ", a song performed by Loituma that was used in the popularLoituma Girl internet meme .External links
* [http://www.noside.com/Catalog/CatalogArtist_01.asp?Action=Get&Artist_ID=24 Description of Loituma] of the
NorthSide home page.
* [http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1738842995641330414 A live version] of the song Ievan Polkka (video).
* [http://www.aboutthecomposer.com/blog/archives/139 A musical analysis] of some of Loituma's songs
* [http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=77443125 Loituma's MySpace Profile]
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