North country

Folk music from Scandinavia

by J. Poet

When the topic of Scandinavian music comes up, the first artists mentioned are usually American- and European-influenced Swedish pop bands like Abba, Ace of Bass, and the Cardigans. But in recent years the success of the Swedish folk/rock group Hedningarna and the pop folk of Finland's Värttinä has reignited interest in more-traditional music throughout the region. In fact, there is so much traditional music coming out of Scandinavia that Rob Simonds, one of the founders of Rykodisc, quit his position there two years ago to form Northside Records, a label whose mission is to bring Swedish, Finnish, and Norwegian folk music to America.

The history of Swedish folk has some startling parallels to the evolution of folk in America. Back in the '40s and '50s Swedish labor organizers used folk songs to help unionize workers. Then in the '60s, Swedish hippies sought out folk artists, sparking a rebirth of interest in traditional fiddling, and introducing the nyckelharpa, an ancient Swedish fiddle that looks like a cross between a sitar and a violin, to a new generation. When fiddler Mats Edén formed Groupa in the early '80s, Swedish folk got a commercial boost. Groupa played traditionally but promoted themselves like a pop band. Their newest disc, Lavalek (Northside), includes material that wouldn't sound out of place at an Appalachian square dance. For a quick overview of their career, pick up the Northside CD 15 Years.

Groupa provided a training ground for Hedningarna founder Hållbus Totte Mattsson. Hedningarna ("The Heathens") became a sensation by combining hard rock and glossy production with traditional folk sounds. The line-up features two Finnish women singers who use the archaic Finno-Ugric harmonies rediscovered by Värttinä to give the music an otherworldly dimension. This polyphonic vocal technique was once widely practiced in Finland, but in recent years it had almost died out apart from a small enclave of Finnish people who live in the Western Russian region of Karelia. Hedningarna's groundbreaking Northside albums Trä ("Wood") and Kaksi! ("Two") take inspiration from acoustic Finnish folk, but their use of distorted guitars and hard-hitting backbeats gives the music a metallic, almost gothic edge. However, for their latest album, Karelia Visa (Northside), the band traveled to Karelia, where they rediscovered the acoustic roots of Finnish music and were moved to return to traditional fiddle, harp, flute, and hurdy-gurdy arrangements.

Värttinä ("Distaff") are probably the best known Finnish folk group, and deservedly so. Oi Dai (Xenophile, 1994), a collection of bawdy traditional tunes, made them an "overnight" sensation. Having a line-up that's fronted by three energetic and beautiful women probably didn't hurt in that regard. To date, Oi Dai is the best-selling folk-music album in Finland's history, and Värttinä followed it up by becoming a hot commodity on the world-music market with Vihma ("Drizzle"; Wicklow) and Kokko ("Bonfire"; Nonesuch), albums that experimented with pop and even hip-hop. Sari Kaasinen, one of the group's founders, recently quit to devote her time to Sirmakka, an acoustic band with a more traditional approach. Their exuberant new Tsihi Tsihi (Finlandia Innovator) shows that you don't have to plug in to rock out.

One of the more impressive players in Sweden today is Willie Toors, a fiddler who's wandered the country playing his music for close to 60 years. Over time he's picked up techniques from Swedish Gypsies and other traditional players, and there's a timeless magic about this music. His latest, Från Logar, Skogar, Zigenarläger och Cirkustält ("From Barns, Woods, Gypsy Camps, and Circus Tents"; Hurv), is marked by his understated versatility. Toors, whose bread and butter are the dances and parties he performs at in Sweden's back country, invests every number with a sprightly feel that evokes dancing snowflakes and flickering bonfires.

Since the mid '80s, young Norwegian musicians have been rediscovering the traditions of their parents and grandparents. The Norwegian folk supergroup Bukkene Bruse ("Billygoats Gruff") feature flutist Steinar Ofsdal, hardanger fiddler Annbjorg Lien, and pop keyboard player Bjørn Ole Rasch. They put a contemporary spin on tradition on their latest, the dark and brooding The Stone Chair (Northside). On the sunnier side is singer/folklorist Kirsten Bråten Berg's From Senegal to Setesdal (Six Degrees), an Afro-Norwegian collaboration with jaw-harpist Bjørgulv Straume, Sengalese kora player Solo Cissokho, and Kouame Sereba, a drummer from Ivory Coast.

Some elements of the Scandinavian folk-music revival are an acquired taste. But for the most part, the music that labels like Northside is bringing into the US market will sound surprisingly familiar to anyone with an ear for Celtic and American folk musics. And that's something Rob Simonds is hoping to spread the word about. "We're still in educational mode," he jokes over the phone from the Northside offices in Minneapolis. "Part of our mission is still making people aware of all the great music coming out of the Scandinavian countries."