Courage, originality, creativity

The diversity of Finnish music was highlighted in an excellent way in the awarding of the Teosto Prize in April this year. The prize was shared between Sebastian Fagerlund for Ignite; Christel Sundberg for her works on the disc Vapaa ja yksin recorded by Chisu; and Wimme Saari, Tapani Rinne and Tuomas Norvio for the works on the disc Mun. The Teosto Prize amounts to EUR 40,000, and each recipient or group was thus awarded EUR 13,300.

Of the three prizewinners, Mun is an original world music album. Combining the traditional yoik with new sound worlds in an exciting way, Mun is a surprise and a delight in its natural and effortless approach, according to the jury. “The works on the disc explore the relationship between traditional and contemporary in a buoyant and playful way. Mun is music of the world with a strong Finnish flavour.”

The disc brings sparring partners Wimme Saari and Tapani Rinne back together after a hiatus of seven years.

The two have previously worked on music akin to techno, but Mun focuses on Wimme’s skilful use of his voice and Rinne’s rich bass clarinet sounds. There are tracks that have a bit more rock in them, somewhat reminiscent of Albert Kuvezin.

The music was created through brainstorming, interaction and fine-tuning. “I sent Tapani and Tuomas Norvio all kinds of murmurs and other sound clips. They worked with those to build the music further. It went back and forth as we searched for the end result.

“My previous albums were about childhood memories and landscapes. It was floating, stream-of-consciousness stuff. This material is from actual events in adult life and human relationships. You cannot find a better source for material and creativity than your own life.”

According to Wimme, Mun does not have an overall message as such. “But listening to it can lead you to realise that too much striving and seriousness is not good for you. You do not have to be stressed to the max all the time; you can let things just roll along of their own accord.”

Mun went to the top of the charts on world music programmes on radio in Europe. It has also had a lot of airtime on Sámi Radio. The Teosto Prize put Wimme’s music in the news. “The prize announcement was a moment of triumph for marginal music.”


Text: Mika Kauhanen
Translation: Semantix

Photo: Collaborators Wimme Saari, Tapani Rinne and Tuomas Norvio at the prize ceremony. (Jakke Nikkarinen)

More about the Teosto Prize >