Gjallarhorn (group)
Encyclopedia
Gjallarhorn is a band that performs world music
with roots in the folk music
of Finland
. The quartet was born in 1994; its website has not been updated since 2007. The band's music echoes the ancient folk music
tradition of Scandinavia
with medieval ballad
s, minuet
s, prayers in runo-metric chanting and ancient Iceland
ic rímur
epics in a modern way.
, a Swedish
-speaking region on the west coast of Finland, http://www.fimic.fi/fimic/fimic.nsf/mainframe?readform&F7270FB5120E83AEC22566E8003A05D0 one of the four regions of the historical province of Ostrobothnia
and the only region in Finland outside the Åland Islands
where more people speak Swedish than Finnish.
The music of the band remains Swedish in character. Most of their repertoire is the acoustic folk music of these Swedish-speaking Finns, from the unique minuets and ballads that have only survived in Ostrobothnia, to the old traditional waltz
es. The didgeridoo
and sub-contrabass recorder offer an underlying drone, a technique shared by some other Nordic bands such as Garmarna
.
The narrative of Gjallarhorn's songs springs primarily from Norse mythology
. The Gjallarhorn
is the sounding horn used by the god
Heimdallr, guardian of the Bifröst
bridge to Asgard
, to announce the onset of the destructive conflict of Ragnarök
. Heard throughout all worlds, it will awaken the gods to counsel and battle against the assembled enemies of the gods.
, Christopher Öhman (viola
, mandola
) and Jacob Frankenhaeuser (didgeridoo
). The band started as a trio but became a quartet
with percussion in 1996. The band has been a quartet ever since.
In 1997 the first CD Ranarop
was released. The group was selected "Folk music group of the year 1997" and the CD was "Folk music CD of the year 1997" in Finland. In 1998 the band started touring frequently on a professional basis with performances at international world, folk and jazz music festivals. Gjallarhorn has toured in Europe
, USA, Australia
, New Zealand
, Canada
and Japan
.
The second CD Sjofn
was released in 2000 and the third CD Grimborg
in 2002. In 2003 Grimborg was awarded the French "Academie Charles Cros" prize and Gjallarhorn was nominated for the music prize of the Nordic Council of Ministries
.
In 2004 the band made a 10th anniversary tour, and the Swedish Cultural Fund of Finland selected the band with Jenny Wilhelms for their annual honor award, given to artists in different fields of cultural and educational work.
In 2005 the band started working on new material. The fourth album Rimfaxe
was released in 2006. The album was mixed in the USA by Bruce Swedien
. The didgeridoo was replaced by Göran Månsson's sub contrabass recorder as the drone effect and bass of the band.
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
with roots in the folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
of Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. The quartet was born in 1994; its website has not been updated since 2007. The band's music echoes the ancient folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
tradition of Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
with medieval ballad
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
s, minuet
Minuet
A minuet, also spelled menuet, is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in 3/4 time. The word was adapted from Italian minuetto and French menuet, and may have been from French menu meaning slender, small, referring to the very small steps, or from the early 17th-century popular...
s, prayers in runo-metric chanting and ancient Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
ic rímur
Rímur
In Icelandic literature, a ríma is an epic poem written in any of the so-called rímnahættir . They are rhymed, they alliterate and consist of two to four lines per stanza...
epics in a modern way.
The music
The band is Finnish and hails from OstrobothniaOstrobothnia (region)
Ostrobothnia is a region of Finland. It is located in Western Finland. It borders the regions Central Ostrobothnia, Southern Ostrobothnia, and Satakunta and is one of the four regions making up the historical province of Ostrobothnia....
, a Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
-speaking region on the west coast of Finland, http://www.fimic.fi/fimic/fimic.nsf/mainframe?readform&F7270FB5120E83AEC22566E8003A05D0 one of the four regions of the historical province of Ostrobothnia
Ostrobothnia (historical province)
Ostrobothnia, and , is a historical province of Finland to the west and north in Finland. It borders on Karelia, Savonia, Tavastia and Satakunda in the south, and on Västerbotten in Sweden, and Laponia in the north...
and the only region in Finland outside the Åland Islands
Åland Islands
The Åland Islands form an archipelago in the Baltic Sea. They are situated at the entrance to the Gulf of Bothnia and form an autonomous, demilitarised, monolingually Swedish-speaking region of Finland...
where more people speak Swedish than Finnish.
The music of the band remains Swedish in character. Most of their repertoire is the acoustic folk music of these Swedish-speaking Finns, from the unique minuets and ballads that have only survived in Ostrobothnia, to the old traditional waltz
Waltz
The waltz is a ballroom and folk dance in time, performed primarily in closed position.- History :There are several references to a sliding or gliding dance,- a waltz, from the 16th century including the representations of the printer H.S. Beheim...
es. The didgeridoo
Didgeridoo
The didgeridoo is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia around 1,500 years ago and still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe"...
and sub-contrabass recorder offer an underlying drone, a technique shared by some other Nordic bands such as Garmarna
Garmarna
Garmarna is a Swedish folk rock band. Their songs are mainly old Scandinavian ballads.- Biography :Garmarna was founded in 1990. Stefan Brisland-Ferner, Gotte Ringqvist and Rickard Westman were inspired by old Swedish music, which they had heard in a theatre. They began searching for old tunes and...
.
The narrative of Gjallarhorn's songs springs primarily from Norse mythology
Norse mythology
Norse mythology, a subset of Germanic mythology, is the overall term for the myths, legends and beliefs about supernatural beings of Norse pagans. It flourished prior to the Christianization of Scandinavia, during the Early Middle Ages, and passed into Nordic folklore, with some aspects surviving...
. The Gjallarhorn
Gjallarhorn
In Norse mythology, Gjallarhorn is a horn associated with the god Heimdallr and the wise being Mímir...
is the sounding horn used by the god
Æsir
In Old Norse, áss is the term denoting a member of the principal pantheon in Norse paganism. This pantheon includes Odin, Frigg, Thor, Baldr and Tyr. The second pantheon comprises the Vanir...
Heimdallr, guardian of the Bifröst
Bifröst
In Norse mythology, Bifrost or Bilröst is a burning rainbow bridge that reaches between Midgard and Asgard, the realm of the gods...
bridge to Asgard
Asgard
In Norse religion, Asgard is one of the Nine Worlds and is the country or capital city of the Norse Gods surrounded by an incomplete wall attributed to a Hrimthurs riding the stallion Svadilfari, according to Gylfaginning. Valhalla is located within Asgard...
, to announce the onset of the destructive conflict of Ragnarök
Ragnarök
In Norse mythology, Ragnarök is a series of future events, including a great battle foretold to ultimately result in the death of a number of major figures , the occurrence of various natural disasters, and the subsequent submersion of the world in water...
. Heard throughout all worlds, it will awaken the gods to counsel and battle against the assembled enemies of the gods.
History
Gjallarhorn was formed in 1994 on the west coast of Finland, in the Swedish speaking area, by Jenny WilhelmsJenny Wilhelms
Jenny Wilhelms is a Finnish musician. She studied classical and folk music in many Nordic countries. She was the lead singer of the innovative folk band Gjallarhorn from 1994 to its disbandment in 2007...
, Christopher Öhman (viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
, mandola
Mandola
The mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
) and Jacob Frankenhaeuser (didgeridoo
Didgeridoo
The didgeridoo is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia around 1,500 years ago and still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe"...
). The band started as a trio but became a quartet
Quartet
In music, a quartet is a method of instrumentation , used to perform a musical composition, and consisting of four parts.-Western art music:...
with percussion in 1996. The band has been a quartet ever since.
In 1997 the first CD Ranarop
Ranarop (album)
Ranarop: Call of the Sea Witch was the first album by Gjallarhorn, released 1997 by Warner Music Finland.The reworked, remixed and remastered version including an unreleased bonus track was released in November 2002...
was released. The group was selected "Folk music group of the year 1997" and the CD was "Folk music CD of the year 1997" in Finland. In 1998 the band started touring frequently on a professional basis with performances at international world, folk and jazz music festivals. Gjallarhorn has toured in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, USA, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
The second CD Sjofn
Sjofn (album)
Sjofn is an album by Gjallarhorn. It was the band's second studio album, and was released in 2000. It combines striking singing by vocalist Jenny Wilhelms with vigorous Swedish folk-style accompaniment, but with a didgeridoo as an updated drone....
was released in 2000 and the third CD Grimborg
Grimborg (album)
Grimborg is the third studio album by Gjallarhorn, released in 2003.The Allmusic review by Chris Nickson awards the album 4.5 stars and states "There's nothing like the pleasure one can get from hearing a band take a quantum leap in its development, and with the very purplish Grimborg , Gjallarhorn...
in 2002. In 2003 Grimborg was awarded the French "Academie Charles Cros" prize and Gjallarhorn was nominated for the music prize of the Nordic Council of Ministries
Nordic Council Music Prize
The Nordic Council Music Prize is awarded annually by NOMUS, the Nordic Music Committee. Every two years it is awarded for a work by a living composer...
.
In 2004 the band made a 10th anniversary tour, and the Swedish Cultural Fund of Finland selected the band with Jenny Wilhelms for their annual honor award, given to artists in different fields of cultural and educational work.
In 2005 the band started working on new material. The fourth album Rimfaxe
Rimfaxe (album)
Rimfaxe is the fourth album by the Finnish group Gjallarhorn and was released in 2006.The Allmusic review by Chris Nickson awards the album 3 stars and states "Throughout, the traditional material is superb, drawing sometimes on the tradition of the Swedes in Finland, but casting its net all across...
was released in 2006. The album was mixed in the USA by Bruce Swedien
Bruce Swedien
Bruce Swedien is a Grammy Award-winning audio engineer and music producer. He is known for his work with Quincy Jones.Swedien is a five-time Grammy winner and has been nominated 13 times. He recorded, mixed, and assisted in producing the best-sold album in the world, Thriller by Michael Jackson...
. The didgeridoo was replaced by Göran Månsson's sub contrabass recorder as the drone effect and bass of the band.
Band members
The current members of the band are:- Sebastian Åberg, percussion (2006– )
- Adrian Jones, violaViolaThe viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
, mandolaMandolaThe mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
, kalimba. (2000– ) - Göran Månsson, fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
s, recorderRecorderThe recorder is a woodwind musical instrument of the family known as fipple flutes or internal duct flutes—whistle-like instruments which include the tin whistle. The recorder is end-blown and the mouth of the instrument is constricted by a wooden plug, known as a block or fipple...
s, sub contrabass recorder (2005– ) - Jenny WilhelmsJenny WilhelmsJenny Wilhelms is a Finnish musician. She studied classical and folk music in many Nordic countries. She was the lead singer of the innovative folk band Gjallarhorn from 1994 to its disbandment in 2007...
, vocals, fiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
and hardangerfiddleHardingfeleA Hardanger fiddle is a traditional stringed instrument used originally to play the music of Norway. In modern designs, the instruments are very similar to the violin, though with eight or nine strings and thinner wood...
(1994– ) - Martin Kantola, soundSoundSound is a mechanical wave that is an oscillation of pressure transmitted through a solid, liquid, or gas, composed of frequencies within the range of hearing and of a level sufficiently strong to be heard, or the sensation stimulated in organs of hearing by such vibrations.-Propagation of...
(1996– )
Former members
- Jakob Frankenhaeuser, didgeridooDidgeridooThe didgeridoo is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia around 1,500 years ago and still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe"...
(1994–1996) - David Lillkvist, percussion (1996–2002)
- Tommy Mansikka-Aho, didgeridooDidgeridooThe didgeridoo is a wind instrument developed by Indigenous Australians of northern Australia around 1,500 years ago and still in widespread usage today both in Australia and around the world. It is sometimes described as a natural wooden trumpet or "drone pipe"...
, slideridoo and jaw harp (1996–2004) - Christopher Öhman, violaViolaThe viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
, mandolaMandolaThe mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
(1994–2000) - Sara Puljula, percussion (2002–2003)
- Petter Berndalen, percussion (2004–2006)
Albums
- RimfaxeRimfaxe (album)Rimfaxe is the fourth album by the Finnish group Gjallarhorn and was released in 2006.The Allmusic review by Chris Nickson awards the album 3 stars and states "Throughout, the traditional material is superb, drawing sometimes on the tradition of the Swedes in Finland, but casting its net all across...
, 2006 - GrimborgGrimborg (album)Grimborg is the third studio album by Gjallarhorn, released in 2003.The Allmusic review by Chris Nickson awards the album 4.5 stars and states "There's nothing like the pleasure one can get from hearing a band take a quantum leap in its development, and with the very purplish Grimborg , Gjallarhorn...
, 2003 - SjofnSjofn (album)Sjofn is an album by Gjallarhorn. It was the band's second studio album, and was released in 2000. It combines striking singing by vocalist Jenny Wilhelms with vigorous Swedish folk-style accompaniment, but with a didgeridoo as an updated drone....
, 2000 - RanaropRanarop (album)Ranarop: Call of the Sea Witch was the first album by Gjallarhorn, released 1997 by Warner Music Finland.The reworked, remixed and remastered version including an unreleased bonus track was released in November 2002...
, 1997 (original); 2002 (remastered)