Värttinä

Värttinä is a Finnish folk music band that was started as a project by Sari and Mari Kaasinen back in 1983 in the village of Rääkkylä, in Karelia, the southeastern region of Finland. Many transformations have taken place in the band since then. Värttinä shot into fame with the release of their 1990 album Oi Dai .

Currently the band consists of three lead female vocalists supported by six acoustic musicians. Värttinä is collaborating with famous composer from India, A. R. Rahman for the Lord of the Rings musical, set to open in London's West End in 2005.

Lineup

• Mari Kaasinen (vocals)
• Susan Aho (vocals)
• Johanna Virtanen (vocals)
• Janne Lappalainen (bouzouki, saxophone)
• Lassi Logren (fiddle)
• Markku Lepistö (accordion)
• Hannu Rantanen (bass)
• Antto Varilo (guitars, cümbüs tambur)
• Jakko Lukkarinen (drums, percussion)

Discography

• Värttinä (1987)
• Musta Lindu (1989)
• Oi Dai (1990)
• Seleniko (1992)
• Aitara (1994)
• Kokko (1996)
• Vihma (1998)
• Ilmatar (2000)
• Live in Helsinki (2001)
• Iki (2003)

External links

• Official site