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Though she’s a headliner, festival organizers can’t be sure that Her Excellency Kirsti Kauppi, the Ambassador of Finland to the United States, won’t play second fiddle to her countryman.
Arto Järvelä, a well known master fiddler in the Pelimannit tradition from Finland who has visited the area several times with various performing groups and has become known as a sort of music ambassador, will be on hand throughout the weekend of June 23-25, sharing his abundant musical talents through a pair of workshops at Juhannus festival sites.
Järvelä will lead two sessions of “Pelimannit: A Finnish Folk Tradition” during the festival; one will be Friday, June 23 at 1 p.m. at the Hanka Homestead, with the other at 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 24 at the Chapel of St. Matthew on the Finlandia University campus in Hancock. These venues were thoughtfully selected to enhance the attendees’ experience. At Hanka Homestead, the class will take place in the caretaker’s cottage, a cordwood building typical of immigrant farmsteads; while Finlandia University’s Chapel of St. Matthew has a simple design inspired by the Finnish American country churches that once dotted the region’s landscape.
These classes will be traditional repertoire classes, open to folks who play the fiddle or other acoustic instruments. These classes are designed for musicians with at least an intermediate skill level, though anyone with an interest in Finnish folk music is welcome to attend. Registered students will learn a few tunes, and become acquainted with the Pelimannit folk music tradition. There could be an opportunity for the students to have an informal jam session at the conclusion of the workshop.
Registration for the class is $20 per student, payable upon arrival. For further information, call (906) 487-7549.
