Events

The Finnish Choral Society invites you to the

50th Annual Kalevala Festival Events 

at the National Nordic Museum

• A Lecture " An Introduction to Kalevala" 

on the Kalevala Day, Saturday, February 28 at 1 PM

• A Folkdancing demo and workshop on Thursday, April 9 at 6 PM

•  A Kantele performance and Kantele playing workshop on Saturday, April 18, early afternoon

• A Choir Concert by the Finnish Choral Society 

on Thursday evening, April 23

Voluntary Donation, $5 for non NNM members, Free for NNM Members

On Kalevala Day February 28, also known as Finnish Culture Day, we celebrate Finnish folk arts, culture, and traditions by learning about Finland's national epic poem, the Kalevala at the National Nordic Museum at 1 PM.

M.A, M. Th. Marita Toivonen will introduce the epic's mythical stories, characters, and history. Live rune singing will be integrated into the lecture. This program will be followed by a reception of drinks and light refreshments.

What is the Kalevala?

The Kalevala is Finland's national epic. It's a collection of poems that contains stories based on oral poetry traditions from eastern and southeastern Finland. By the 19th century, the tradition of rune singing was already fading under more modern singing cultures, but students from the University of Helsinki began traveling through Karelian villages. They asked people who remembered old poems to sing everything they recalled, and they wrote down the words. Elias Lönnrot compiled the first Kalevala in 1835 based on his own and the students’ notes.

The Kalevala contains mythical stories about the creation of the world, wars, heroes, maidens, and courtships.

One of the central characters in the Kalevala is Väinämöinen. He is an old and wise man, a seer, and a singer of spells. In this lecture, we'll go into detail about the origin of the Kalevala, its characters, and stories.

Speaker

• Marita Toivonen, Master of Theology and Master of Arts majoring in Musicology, University of Helsinki

See NNM Website: 50th Annual Kalevala Lecture | National Nordic Museum