Blog

Experimentation with string materials in small kanteles has shown interestingly how different materials affect the character of the instrument. Changing string material often requires not only a different pitch, but also a different playing technique or touch, as the feel of the strings can be completely different depending on the material. I have tried different […]

The Kanteletupa-concert at the Organo hall of the Helsinki Musiikkitalo on the 11th of February, 2023, was an experiment born as part of research at the University of the Arts Helsinki, perhaps with slightly uncertain expectations at the beginning and at the same time firmly relying on a musical-philosophical theory about improvisation and creativity. In […]

Last autumn, I and my friend Tuula thought it was time to put up an improvisation workshop at her school again. So on February 17th I went and spent another memorable day at Mika Waltari’s school in Laukkoski, Pornainen. With the curriculum reform a few years ago, the kantele was included in the music education […]

Runoi’s kantele camp (June 16–20) is over and I’m still digesting it. Planning and making preparations took almost a year. There were many twists and turns of which the covid-19 was not the smallest one. And finally, everything condensed into five hectic days. Digesting haven’t been merely mental: the meals at the inn PikkuPriha were […]

Wilho Saari, born in 1932 in Naselle, Washington, USA, is a fifth-generation kantele player down from the famous Finnish kantele icon Kreeta Haapasalo (1813-1893). Wilho’s parents came to the USA with the wave of Finnish immigration in the beginning of the 20th century: mother, Aili Lindström (1898–1981) from Rauma in 1911, and father, Wilho (Leppä)Saari […]