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Kalevala Festival – A Long Tradition
Kalevala Festival – A Long Tradition
For 50 years, the Finnish Choral Society of Seattle has celebrated Kalevala Day, bringing Finnish music, culture, and community together in Seattle. Our annual Kalevala Festival began in 1976 and has been hosted at the National Nordic Museum since 1982. In 2026, we celebrated our 50th Kalevala Day—a remarkable milestone in a tradition that has become an important part of Seattle’s Finnish cultural life.
What is the Kalevala?
What is the Kalevala?
The Kalevala is Finland’s national epic, a collection of poems drawn from the oral folk poetry traditions of Finland and Karelia. It was compiled by Elias Lönnrot and first published in 1835.
The poems tell stories of creation, heroes, adventures, love, rivalry, and magic. One of the central figures is Väinämöinen, an ancient and wise singer and seer whose words and songs have extraordinary power.
The Kalevala played an important role in the development of Finnish national identity and had a profound influence on Finnish language, literature, visual art, and music—including the works of composers such as Jean Sibelius.
Kalevala Day
Kalevala Day
Kalevala Day is celebrated on February 28 and is also known as Finnish Culture Day. In Finland and around the world, it is an opportunity to celebrate Finnish culture, folk traditions, music, and the enduring legacy of the Kalevala.
Here in Seattle, our Kalevala Festival brings these traditions to life through music, performances, stories, lectures, and Finnish cultural traditions. It is a celebration not only of the Kalevala itself, but of the living Finnish culture that continues to connect generations and communities.
Explore Past Festivals
Explore Past Festivals
Kalevala Festivals held during the pandemic are available to watch on YouTube:
Finnish Kantele: Remembering Wilho Saari
46th Annual Kalevala Day Festival · 2022
This 45-minute program celebrates the kantele, Finland’s traditional stringed instrument, and honors the life and legacy of Wilho Saari, a beloved Washington State kantele player and composer.
The program features the Finnish Choral Society of Seattle, Evergreen Livakat Kantele Players, and internationally renowned kantele player Arja Kastinen, the first Finnish folk musician to earn a Doctor of Music degree from the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.
Wilho Saari was a recipient of numerous honors for his contributions to Finnish and American folk music, including the Washington State Governor’s Heritage Award, the Finlandia Foundation National Performer of the Year Award, and the National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship in 2006—the highest honor in the United States for folk and traditional arts.
Inspired by the magic of the Kalevala and Kanteletar, this special program explored the ancient Finnish traditions of rune singing, spells, charms, and healing through song.
The program featured Marita Toivonen, Master of Theology and Ethnomusicology from Helsinki, speaking about Kalevala Rune Song, and Anna Fält, a renowned Finnish loitsu singer and researcher. Born and raised in Finland and now living in Sweden, Anna combines different vocal traditions, languages, and singing aesthetics in her unique approach to the ancient tradition of Finnish spell singing.
44th Annual Kalevala Day Festival · 2020
The 44th Annual Kalevala Day Festival celebrated one of Finland’s most beloved traditions: the sauna. Presented in partnership with the National Nordic Museum, the virtual program explored Finnish sauna culture through music, stories, folklore, and dance.
The program featured the Finnish Choral Society of Seattle, Kalevala Trio, and Evergreen Kantele Players, along with a presentation on Finnish sauna culture by Kaija Kauppinen, a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Washington. The program also included folk dancing, a solo performance by Maria Männistö, and a look at the National Nordic Museum’s newly refurbished sauna.
The festival was presented in honor of the historic Finnish log sauna relocated from Finn Hill in Bothell to the museum’s East Sculpture Garden.
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