My discovery of Wimme Saari, Tappani Rinne and Sami joik music: a beautiful clash of modernism and traditionalism

In the introduction to this blog I mentioned that the name came from a Finnish short film called 'Birds In The Earth'. I saw this film at the Kiasma museum of modern art on a trip to Helsinki. Having read an article some time before about the two stars of the film – Katja and Birit Haarla, two ballet dancing sisters from the Sami community – I was intrigued to view the film. Amongst the mostly dark and quite surrealist works in Kiasma, the film stood out for me as a genuinely moving piece; not just because of the beautiful images on screen which saw the dancers move across the landscapes of Sápmi in ballet costumes and traditional Sami outfits, but the remarkable music which completely transported me to their world. It was a world not far away, but one that felt like a distant land from the capital city. The music and the images felt alien and yet strangely comfortable.

After returning from Helsinki, I decided to look up the the soundtrack to 'Birds In The Earth'. It turned out to be one of a long list of collaborations between Wimme Saari and Tappani Rinne, two artists who on the face of it couldn't be further apart. Wimme Saari is a Sami joik singer, who performs in the traditional Sami art form of joik. I am not going to give a detailed description of what joik is, but if you want to read more about it then there is some great information here: https://beneathnorthernlights.com/joik-the-oldest-vocal-tradition-in-europe/ . Essentially, joik is vocal singing about themes of Sami life. One of the key things I have read about joik is that the word is not a noun but a verb (you joik something, you don't joik about something). So when you are singing a joik on the theme of a person, an animal or a place, you are actually attempting to evoke the spirit of the thing itself rather than simply describe it.

Tappani Rinne on the other hand is an artist known for his highly intriguing jazz, experimenting with woodwind and electronic instrumentation together. In the early 90s his band RinneRadio gained much critical praise for their fluid mix of jazz, techno and ambient styles. A highly modern combination which even today feels forward thinking. One might think that this clash of genres between very traditional Sami joik and highly modern experimental jazz would be a bit of a mess. But the connection between the two musicians actually has a remarkable affect of bringing both sounds into a different context from that which they were created in; and in any art form, context is everything.

On it's own this type of electro-jazz ambience isn't necessarily my cup of tea, in fact I would probably shy away from it in favour of some more intense experimental ambient music such as Tim Hecker or Ben Frost. And sparse vocal recordings of traditional folk music from anywhere in the world is again something I have struggled to fully embrace before. But what Tappani Rinne's soundscapes did was give me a canvas to really listen and enjoy the joik vocals of Wimme Saari, and in a strange sonic palindrome Wimme's joiks gave a new focus to Rinne's compositions.

So I delved further into Wimme's works, the first album I discovered was 'Mun'. It is a remarkably varied record which allows both the joik and the jazz to breathe and come to the surface in different places. I couldn't get enough of it, and despite not understanding the words (or even knowing how to pronounce them) the melodies and rhythms in the voices were addictive and alluring. From there I got hooked on more recent albums 'Human' and 'Soabbi' as well as the earlier 'Cugu', the cover of which set the scene better than many album covers I have seen in any genre.

What I found particularly interesting is that this music isn't all completely serious and lacking in merriment. As it happens 'Cugu' translates to puppy in Wimme's Sami language, and the title track is a bouncy and fun piece full of energy and excitement. Remember when I said that joik was about evoking the spirit of something and not just describing the thing? This is exactly how that comes into practice when the joik is moved beyond just a pure vocal chant. Throughout these collaboration records between Wimme and Rinne there is an innate balance of joy and solemnity, but everything they do is entirely sincere.

I have started to move on and discover other modern Sami joik singers such as Ulla Pirttijärvi, whose vocals are both haunting and warm in one. Niko Valkeapää's music has more rhythm and guitars in it, and his melodies tend to fall into a more contemporary bracket, making his music highly engaging. Whilst my journey into this art is only just beginning I am continuing to find music that moves me in the same way that that beautiful soundtrack from 'Birds In The Earth' did.

Some essential albums to check out:

Wimme Saari: Mun

Wimme Saari: Cugu

Wimme and Tappani Rinne: Human

Niko Valkeapää: Gusto

Ulla Pirttijärvi: Áibbašeabmi

RinneRadio: Unik