 | | FinnFest’s themes include Finnish music and e.g.
Ninni Poijärvi will be performing with her band. | |
The gardens of Duluth in the U.S.A will be blooming with blue and white flowers this summer. Why? Because the 25th annual FinnFest takes place in this small, lakeside American town. Over 8,000 people are expected to attend the five-day festival, starting 25 July in Duluth, Minnesota. This year’s theme is “Sharing the Spirit of Finland” and the programme contains over 300 events focused around four major themes: Finnish culture, the music of Finland, the contributions of women of Finnish heritage, and the connection between Finnish and Anishinaabe – a native language spoken in North-East America. In addition to this there are some highly recommended events, such as a workshop for baking pulla and a fashion show featuring Marimekko designs and patterns. Musical events contain both local musicians with Finnish roots as well as guests arriving all the way from Finland. Conductor Osmo Vänskä will perform with the Minnesota Orchestra and two Finnish groups, Ninni Poijärvi Trio and Band’O, will be attracting youth to the festival with their From Blues to Rock concert. The highlight of the festival is nevertheless the visit of Finland’s President Tarja Halonen. High expectations after long preparations The festival has been prepared for over two years and publicist Ira Salmela hopes that its high-class performances and presenters will exceed people’s expectations. Salmela herself is one of the few younger generation Finns organising the event. She moved to Duluth in 1999, from Jyväskylä, to work with the University of Minnesota Duluth women’s hockey team. “My goal with FinnFest has been to bring today’s Finland to the event and get the younger Finnish-American generations involved,” Salmela explains and continues: “Last year while organising FinnFest I met my husband who is a fourth generation Finnish American and has one hundred per cent Finnish blood. FinnFest literally changed my life and has given me a whole new picture of the Finnish American culture.” Tiina Karinen from the Finnish Ice Hockey Association is attending festival as a visitor. ”This is my first time visiting the festival and I’m really looking forward to it. It will be interesting to see all those Finnish American performers and lecturers and hear about the viewpoints that they have on Finnish culture. After all, many of them have never visited Finland, but they have a strong sense of their heritage,” she points out. The origins of FinnFest can be traced back to 1982, when a group of Finnish Americans met to organise an annual summer festival to celebrate Finland and Finnish American culture and to maintain a sense of their heritage. Since then the festival has been arranged in various regions across the U.S that are connected to Finnish American culture. Duluth, which calls itself a four-seasons city, is an appropriate place for the FinnFest, as the area has the largest percentage of Finns living in any urban centre in the United States; 29,602 people (12.14 per cent). FinnFest is an open event and the organisers welcome everyone interested in Finland and Finnish American culture. Kati Hurme - HT
Roni Rekomaa - Lehtikuva |
