Kaustisen Haakuoro and Tallari

KAUSTISEN HAAKUORO AND TALLARI Kaustisen Haakuoro and Tallari Kaustisen Haakuoro 2002

One of the thrills of getting to attend the Kaustinen Folk Music festival this past summer was getting a chance to see how integrated music and tradition is to that community. In a rural, sparsely populated farming town bursting at the seams with instrumental ensembles and dance groups, nowhere was my wish better fulfilled than getting to hear Haakuoro, the local wedding/festival choir ... a 30+ member choral group that focuses on traditional and in-the-tradition songs as well as vocal arrangements for selections from key regional folk composing giants like Konsta Jylha and Viljami Niittykoski. Since 1965, the choir membership has been drawn from the surrounding area, taking time out of their regular days to get together for rehearsals and special event performances.

For this recording, made in 2002, the choir is joined by the region's celebrated instrumental "house band," Tallari. Together, under the direction of choir leader Jarmo Kotaja, they bring their heavenly harmonies to 14 pieces, including several "vocalese" arrangements of polskas, polkas and waltzes. Technically, this isn't the greatest of recordings--there's somewhat a loss of presence and a lot of "room feel" to the way the choir was recorded--but there's no missing the power and beauty of a large group of great singers working together, and Tallari, as usual, brings a solid contrast to the voices for this lovely material. For years, Pete Seeger has been telling me about how choirs fit folk music, and nowhere is that position made truer than with this skilled group of singers. Definitely worth a listen!

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