Finland

This re-issue of early Medieval vocal music from Finland includes a unique reconstruction of 14th and 15th century Gregorian music that was performed in Finland in the memory of St. Henry, Finland’s Patron Saint. Liturgical literature dealing with St. Henry is abundant and the music in this collection consists of extracts from masses and offices to St. Henry. Liturgical legend and oral tradition provide a colorful account of the English clergyman’s mission to Finland where he was killed on January 20th, 1156.

As well known as the music itself is, the full background to Finlandia, the great symphonic poem composed by Finn Jean Sibelius, was unfamiliar to me until very recently. It turns out that Finlandia was originally part of a larger work that Sibelius composed in 1899 with the rather unartistic title "Press Celebrations Music". The seventh movement of that work, "Tableau 6, Suomi herää (Finland Awakes)", was later reworked into a stand-alone piece and became known as Finlandia, and this is how we have generally heard it performed since that time. It has become recognized as one of the most important national songs of Finland, but it is not the national anthem, that is Maamme ("Our Land").

Finnish melodic metallers SONATA ARCTICA are back with an all new live, "Live In Finland". The set includes the band's entire April 15, 2011 performance at Club Teatria in Oulu, Finland as well as a bonus disc containing eight songs that were recorded at the Kemi festival concert.

Girls Of Angeli - The New Voice Of North
EAC+LOG+CUE | FLAC: 271 MB | MP3 CBR 320: 118 MB | Full Artwork | 5% Recovery Info
Label/Cat#: Finlandia Records # 0630-18063-2 | Country/Year: Finland 1997 | Genre: World / Pop Fusion

The Girls of Angeli find their inspiration in yoik, a type of traditional music from the Sami, Finland's indigenous people. Their album, The New Voice of the North, combines the chanting cadences of yoik with contemporary dance and pop elements, and collects the group's works from 1992 to 1997. (…) The New Voice of the North is a beautiful fusion of native and new music, and worthwhile for fans of adventurous, experimental world music.

If there is a country famous for its reservoir of extraordinary musicians and its significant composers in particular, then it's Finland, which is all the more astonishing when you consider the size of its population - Finald has 5.5 million inhabitants. The country's distinguished tradition of music-making is fundamental to this reputation for artistic excellence. Finland can be rightly called a "country of singers". Even when it comes to contemporary compositions, traditional music always plays an essencential role in the pieces, contributing to their accessibility.