Loituma, also known as "stiff bread"

Loituma is a Finnish quartet, and every thing I discover about them is so interesting, I’m gonna share it with you. :slight_smile:

They are perhaps most known for their a cappella version of “Ievan Polkka”:

Okay, for years I had only seen Loituma singing this song a cappella, but recently I’ve discovered so much more… we’ll get to those soon!

In this discussion I want to actually discover more about the folks composing Loituma. They are Finnish, and I’m not tuned into contemporaneous Finnish and Swedish culture (we read our share of Tove Jansson and Astrid Lindgren). That’s why when I read the following at Loituma - Wikipedia I’m so curious:

Loituma’s initial incarnation was in the autumn of 1989 as a septet called Jäykkä Leipä (“Stiff Bread”), born in the Sibelius Academy’s Folk music department. The original lineup included singers Sanna Kurki-Suonio and Tellu Paulasto, who later left for Sweden to join Hedningarna.

That sounds… adorable. :bread:

@tim, somewhat related: have you ever considered going by “Timo Häbersäck”?

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My last name is ripe for umlauts, it’s true!

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