Tsuumi Sound System

About GROWING UP album (2009):

"I remember describing Tsuumi Sound System's last album (reviewed in #49) as a work of genius: a lesson in how to make the perfect album. This eight-piece band from Finland have done it again, complementing their addictions to samba and tango with a little jazz, a hint of the Balkans and the undeniable delights of Finnish folk music." Fiona Talkington, SONGLINES/BBC3 - 2010

"Growing Up is fifty minutes of excellent entertainment."
Alex Monaghan, FOLKWORLD - 2009

ABOUT HOTAS album (2007)

“Bands about to embark on a recording take note: this is a lesson in how to make the perfect album.” Fiona Talkington, SONGLINES, - 2008

"This is a powerful and exciting album, which reminds at times of the Scandinavian greats of folk innovation - Hoven Droven, May Monday, Vä:sen and the likes. Based on this album, Tsuumi Sound System should have a rightful place in the top of the league of Scandinavian bands." Mike Moll, FOLKWORLD - 2008

”Varje låt på den här skivan är en pärla…” Roger Thorèn, Lira.-07

VARIOUS

"-- the concert of Tsuumi Sound System was sold out, and the girls in the audience were screaming as to rock stars. Tsuumi Sound System actually is the rock band of folk music". Mari Koppinen, Helsingin Sanomat – 2011, concert review of the TSS concert in the Helsinki Music Centre (translation)

”Tsuumi Sound System has taken its place in the frontest row of Finnish world music.” Pirkko Kotirinta, Helsingin Sanomat – 2008 (translation)

”It’s a very strong band indeed, as their storming show at this year’s Kaustinen festival showed” Andrew Cronshaw, fROOTS - 2007

” Tsuumi Sound System was simply the best band I saw live at the Kaustinen Folk Music Festival in 2006!” Philip Page – Hoedown Management

- Songlines, Folkworld, Lira, Helsingin Sanomat,

By Michael Moll

Traditional Scandinavian themes contemporarily composed, taken up with a huge amount of creativity and innovation: This is a powerful and exciting album, which reminds at times of the Scandinavian greats of folk innovation - Hoven Droven, May Monday, Vä:sen and the likes. Based on this album, Tsuumi Sound System should have a rightful place in the top of the league of Scandinavian bands. Each tune on the album features different aspects of the band, with a great balance of instruments - the tunes are skillfully crafted to combine and leave space for each of the different instruments, as well as bringing together the whole bunch to great effect. The band features most beautiful combinations of the melody instruments of fiddles, piano, accordion, guitars and saxophone, skillfully backed by double bass and drums/percussion. The reference on the CD's sleeve notes to this being "Sibelius Academy Folk Music Department recording 66" suggests that the band is the fruitful result of music students coming together, and what a heavenly combination this is! A wonderful album full of variation and brilliance - clearly one of the best recordings of 2007! - FOLKWORLD (2009)

By Karin Jacobson

De har irrat runt efter kulturhus i Förenade Arabemiraten och blivit beskjutna med luftgevär i finska Lappland. Däremellan fått sina alster tolkade av Bremerfilharmonikerna och gjort spektakulär scenshow på Eurovisionsslagerfestivalen. Nu har det gått drygt tio år sedan första ackordet i finska Tsuumi Sound System togs och de säger sig till slut ha funnit sin identitet. Publiken hittade de nere på kontinenten.

Vi spelar nästan aldrig i Finland längre, det är bara festivalscener som funkar för oss där. Inte i Sverige heller, det är ännu svårare. Däremot har vi mycket gig nere i Europa, säger violinisten Tommi Asplund, och flyttar sig från det värsta solgasset vid cafébordet.

Egentligen är det ingen bra plats att ses på. Den dånande espressomaskinen, de ideliga mobilsignalerna från cafébesökare och larmet på gatan utanför gör det svårt att uppfatta allt som sägs. Men å andra sidan, tillsammans med Tommis äventyrshistorier om finska snöstormar, brännheta bilfärder och livsfarliga italienska serpentinvägar, blir mixen nästan som en textsättning av bandets musik. Om texter funnes, vill säga. För Tsuumi Sound Systems musik är helt instrumental, byggd på en sättning med saxofon, fiol, viola, dragspel, piano, gitarr, bas och trummor. Ändå är de ruskigt skickliga på att berätta en historia, sprungna som de är ur en finsk dansshowensemble.

Allting började 1998, när Tsuumi Dance Company, numera ett av Finlands främsta moderna folkdanskompanier, startade och värvade de musiker som blev ursprungsversionen av Tsuumi Sound System. Under några intensiva somrar åkte de runt och gjorde folkloreshower tillsammans, där höjdpunkten blev Eurovision Song Contest i Helsingfors 2007 (då serbiska Marija Serifovic vann om någon minns). Samma år började det sound som bandet själva kommit att kalla “nordic urban ethno” ta form, konsoliderat i och med inspelningen av plattan Hotas.
– Innan dess hade folk kommit och gått, vi hade inte ens haft nån fast gitarrist och basist utan spelade det själva när det behövdes. Därför ser vi egentligen Hotas som vår debut, trots att vi gjorde tre skivor innan, förklarar Tommi.

Deras egen genredefiniering är ganska talande. Musiken rör sig i samma landskap som kollegornas i Värttinä och Gjallarhorn, eller, om man letar efter svenska namn, Väsens. Bottnen alltså i nordisk folkmusik, men med rytmer och klanger hämtade från lite varstans. Vad som utmärker just Tsuumi Sound System är dock fusiondraget, ibland låter de lika sålda på jazzfusion som på traditionell finsk folkmusik. Låten Skyfixer på nya skivan Growing up är ett tydligt exempel. Efter att ha startat som en visserligen hårt gitarrdriven folkmelodi på fiol och dragspel bestämmer sig plötsligt fiolen, efter att ha vilat ut några takter, för att göra upp och presentera sig som en speedad konsertviolinist som stegrar sig allra högst upp på e-strängen, bara för att direkt tas ner på jorden av en elfiols lik viola i grova elgitarrssoloimitationer. Lika ösig är låten Rec 32, men där är det istället i ett jazzigt sopransaxofonsolo som spänningen skapas.

Att nordic urban ethno låter som ett hopplock beror just på musikernas olika bakgrunder. Gitarristen spelar tango, basisten är med i folkrockbandet Snekka, dragspelaren Hannu Kella skriver fortfarande en del dansmusik, och Tommi själv har haft svårt att välja mellan den klassiska och folkmusikaliska banan. Tyngst folkmusikbakgrund har otvivelaktigt violinisten och violasten Esko Järvelä, uppvuxen i folkmusikbyn Kaustby som han är, och av samma folkmusiksläkt som JPP. Både han och Tommi spelar även med folkrockiga Frigg och Tommi har samarbetat med tidigare Lira-omskrivna dragspelaren Johanna Juhola och pianisten Timo Alakotila. Scenen är inte större än i Sverige, det vill säga att alla spelar med alla.
– Vi är ju rätt upptagna musiker allihop, men nu känns det som om alla faktiskt har detta som sitt huvudprojekt. Och det krävs, vi är ju inte bandet som får plats på en vanlig pub direkt.

Producentvalet till de två senaste skivorna visar också hur nära det är mellan de nordiska scenerna. Precis som Hotas, som bland annat rosades i engelska musikmagasinet Songlines med orden: “Bands about to embark on a recording take note: this is a lesson in how to make the perfect album.” och hamnade i det årets Top of the world-kategori, har den nya Growing up producerats av Väsen-gitarristen Roger Tallroth.
– Det var ju en drömproducent, ingen vågade tro att han skulle vilja. Han har verkligen hjälpt oss att höra helheten och kommit med förslag på förenklingar, man vill ju gärna överarra när man är så här många. Men framför allt har han sagt “sluta gnälla, det låter bra” och hindrat oss från att ta om hela tiden.
En av de mest dansanta låtarna på skivan – för de gör fortfarande sådana – är bandets 50-årspresent till producenten. Grown up Roger.
- LIRA (Nov. 2009)

GLATT & VERKERHT (Austria, 2009)
The Sibelius Academy and their Department of Folk Music, creative record labels, as well as organisations like the Finnish Music Information Centre support the Helsinki music scene in their organisation and development. All of this would not be imaginable, however, if it wasn’t for trans-generational and trans-national family traditions. Even though this music culture, with its main origin in the countryside, may not reveal itself at first sight to foreigners, it is inherent to certain family names, “Järvelä” definitely being one of them. Let’s mention but two of its representatives: Arto, founding member of the almost legendary Järvelän Pikkupelimanitt, and Esko, a driving force in young ensembles like Frigg. Frigg hailed a concert at Glatt&Verkehrt 2004; Tsuumi Sound System could even go one better. With their irresistible musical joy of performing the eight ensemble members (some of which also come from Sweden) combine old dance music from the heart of Finland with contemporary elements, zoom into these—according to their name—and are not sparing with romantic tunes, either. As for each festival day’s closing gig, Tsuumi’s Austria premiere calls for the chairs to vanish and your legs to move! In the end, the band started its career as accompanying music to the eponymous dance ensemble and one of their tracks is named after a popular Scandinavian fitness and outdoor company…

NOTE DI NOTTE (Sicily, 2009)
They brought to Theatre Garibaldi their fantastic energy from the North and created an unforgettable feeling. The audience really enjoyed TSS performance which was full of rhythms, joy, humor, and much of good music – which is exactly what the festival "Note di Notte" is all about.

The eight members of TSUUMI SOUND SYSTEM- Tommi Asplund (fiddle), Esko Järvelä (fiddle, violin), Pilvi Talvities (piano, armonium), Hannu Kella (accordion), Jani Kivelä (guitars), Joakim Berghäll (sax, percussion), Tarmo Anttila (double-bass) and Jussi Nikula (drums, percussion) – were chosen to perform the final concert of the Musical Season organized by Mariolina Marino, the artistic director of The Entertainer. With this band, talent and excellence were at the appointment. Their big acoustic sound rooted in the purest folk music tradition of Scandinavia fully inspired the audience.

With Friskis & Svettis, TSUUMI SOUND SYSTEM immediately captured the audience. With Casino, Tulin ja Hannum häävalssi and Hotas, the piece that gives the name to this concert and to their last album (Aito Records, 2007) which was produced with the technical assistance of Swedish folk guitarist Roger Tallroth, their progressive-folk took the colors of the rainbow, with flavors of romanticism and multiple influences.
Track after track, the journey continued with the vivid notes of Tango Private, Korento, Grown up Roger, Taivaan Korsaaja and Hilsainen mieli. Then came Katu, Huuma, Economy samba, September and Valse du Caribou. The main characteristic of all those compositions is that they are all original tunes of the band. Each of them has its specific mood, from the atmospheres that belong the homeland of Father Christmas to Latin and Celtic soundscapes; from folk dance rhythms to sensual ballads.
TSUUMI SOUND SYSTEM really know how to circulate the energy . With the last pieces, Pahna, Efteria Polke, Rec.32 and Meteor , there was a total communion with the audience. The concert ended up with a big “encore”.
Press Office – TheEntertainer.it
- AUSTRIA, ITALY (2009)

1.- Your album is published by the Sibelius Academy. Our first question is almost obligatory: Have you studied there?

Growing Up was not published by Sibelius Academy but by Tsuumi Sound System LTD. Our CD is only a part of a CD release series run by Folk Music Department. The production is completely our own.

Some of us have studied in Sibelius Academy. Pilvi, Hannu and Esko have studied in Folk Music Department and Tarmo has studied in Music Education and Orchestral Instruments Department. Esko, Tommi and Pilvi have also studied in Sibelius Academy Youth Department in their earlier years. The other guys have studied music in many different music schools in Finland and abroad, mainly in pop/jazz contexts.

2.- What approaches and objectives are developed curriculum at the Sibelius Academy? How has influenced this education in your music?

Of course our music studies in Siba and the other music schools have an influence on our music, but we think that the main thing in our sound is that we have known each other and have played together for so many years. The other important thing is that all our tunes are our own compositions and arrangements. Composing is also something that we all have been encouraged to do and it has also been a big part of our studies.

3.- The Finnish folk had a great development, with multiple bands of international success. What does TSS that has not been done before?

We have a strong, energetic rock’n’roll attitude on our stage appearance. This is something that has been seen in other countries folk scene more than in Finland.

Our group is also large in size, eight members is quite unusual when talking about a world music act from northern Europe. This also gives a huge and fat “Wall of Sound” that is very characteristic for TSS. Basically we aim to be a band that can be put to play in big festival stages as well as smaller concert venues. In Finland folk music bands are often very minimalistic and intimate, audiences must be very careful when listening. We mostly like to play for audiences who simply want to go wild with the music.

4.- We do not know your previous albums. But we see that in "Growing Up" there is not traditional songs, only your own compositions. Have you previously worked on traditional themes, or always on your own compositions?

Everyone of us have done a lot of work with playing and studying traditional music from Finland and all over the world. In earlier days of TSS we had a few trad-tunes also, but nowadays we play mostly our own compositions. We think that if you want to make something new you have to know your tradition.

5.- Do you consider yourself an international world music group, or are there elements in your music that you defined better as a Finnish folk group?

There are naturally elements from Finnish folk too but it has never been our primary goal to keep the sound purely Finnish. We ourselves like to talk about Finnish Urban Ethno because of elements that come from more modern and urban genres. TSS is also very much influenced by world music from other countries. In this light it would be more appropriate to talk of international world music.

6.- About purely traditional repertoire of Finland: Do you think that it is well exploited? Or in the other hand, is there material on which to work, without inventing new melodies?

Finland is probably one of the most colourful countries in what comes to tradition, the border between east and west goes exactly in the middle of Finland. That can also be seen in two different traditions, Russian influences in east and Swedish on the west coast. In north we have Saami people as an addition. This combination really makes Finland a melting pot of traditions.

Traditional material is very well collected in Finland as well. So there is definitely loads of material to deal with. Many people in Finnish folk scene like to deal with this material but in TSS the approach and the influences are a bit in other directions, such as various different world music traditions, pop- and jazz scene.

7.- What are the musical elements that define the work of TSS to renew the traditional music?

We think that best way to renew tradition is in creating something new, not only polishing tunes that have already been played. The elements and grooves from Finnish traditional music can be still found in our own compositions and arrangements of the tunes. Elements from other music styles are always strongly involved when we make music and that also makes a big difference to traditional way of playing folk music.

8.- What is the status of Finnish folk music? Is it alive, is it well known by the people of Finland?

People in Finland like to talk about a new wave of folk music and things are happening but very, very slowly. Tradition is well kept alive, thanks to good possibilities to study folk music. But when ever we play in Finland there usually are a lot of people who are amazed just because they didn’t know what folk music can sound like.

It is very difficult to get air play in Finland with folk music and that also leads us to the fact, that people really don’t know what’s going on in Finnish folk scene. The biggest names in Finnish folk play most of their gigs abroad, that’s the way it is also with TSS.

9.- We have seen influences of traditional music in many genres, even in the rock. Does it happen the same in Finland?

Today there are a lot of folkish elements in Finnish pop scene as well. There are a couple of folk heavy bands that have gained a big success around the world under the recent years. The most popular band in Finland has a violin in their line-up, they also take influences of Finnish folk poetry in their lyrics. Our Eurovision Song Contest act for this year is a folk singer duo. However, most of these groups have been very much produced away from pure folk tradition, which is a shame. It is difficult to be personal if you want to gain success.

10.- Listening to this work, we find reminiscences, air and influences of many kinds, from Pink Floyd until the most famous Scandinavian bands like Hedningarna. We would like to know what influences TSS acknowledges in his style.

People always ask what the influences in our music are and it is very difficult to say the most important ones, at least for us. Definitely there are a lot of things from Swedish folk music, we have been honoured to work with Swedish “Folk Guitar Hero” Roger Tallroth from band Väsen. He has produced our two latest CD’s.

We haven’t really ever been aiming towards some particular sound. The colourful backround of musicians in TSS and a lot of influences from all directions make a sound that is very unique. That is just something that has been born in long cooperation between musicians in the band.

11.- Initially you had Tsuumi name. Why have you changed? What means Tsuumi in Finnish?

“Tsuumi” is originally a dance company, which we were accompanying for several years. Last three years we have been doing gigs on our own and “Tsuumi Sound System” is the name just for the band. This is how we want to avoid audience getting confused about who is going to perform. The dance company is still working on their own and we are doing music on our own.

Tsuumi is how a zoom (for example in a camera) would be written if it was a Finnish word.

12.- Finally. Do you think coming to visit Spain?

We are very excited to come to Spain. We really hope that some of our negotiations will get some good results and we get a tour in Spain in the near future.


- INTERFOLK #45 (2010)

By Fiona Talkington (BBC3) - About Growing Up by TSS

I remember describing Tsuumi Sound System's last album (reviewed in #49) as a work of genius: a lesson in how to make the perfect album. This eight-piece band from Finland have done it again, complementing their addictions to samba and tango with a little jazz, a hint of the Balkans and the undeniable delights of Finnish folk music. In the expert hands of producer Roger Tallroth they've combined their different musical backgrounds to make an album which, they say, takes us from the wastelands of Lapland to the urban rush of Helsinki. It goes without saying that Tsuumi's performance is impeccable. Wonderful fiddle playing, magical accordion sounds, crisp, neat, driving percussion, and enough earth and grit - especially from the sax - to make this another ten out of ten concoction.

Their pianist Pilvi Talvitie has penned a gorgeous tune in 'Livets Vår', superbly scored for accordion and pizzicato strings. Esko Järvelä's 'LaaLaa Land' is a energetically poignant track infused with some brilliant understated percussion. Hannu Kella's 'Sicilian Panda' must have been designed to wrong-foot anyone who dares to dance, while the harmonium, accordion and piano of the final 'Unknown Tomorrow' makes sense of the album's title (Growing Up), with a heartbreaking theme worthy of a major film score. Yes they have grown up, but have lost none of their charm, drive and appeal in the process.


- SONGLINES (2010)

By Fiona Talkington (BBC3) - About HOTAS by TSS (Aito Records, 2008)

What a deliciously unpredictable album: a dangerously addictive rollercoaster ride throught Finnish folk, jazz, heart-wrenching ballad and unstoppable dance music, with a little Balkan edge. In lesser hands this could have been one of those albums that, in crossing too many musical boundaries, forgets where it started. But in Tsuumi Sound System’s hands it’s a work of sheer genius. Finnish folk is the basis, with accordionist Hannu Kella (a sweet-toned player akin to Maria Kalaniemi and Markku Lepistö) aided and abatted by brilliant fiddle playing from Tommi Asplund and Esko Järvelä.
’Pahna’ is a great example of that driving Finnish fiddle sound, peppered with harmonic twists which fans of the group JPP will relish. The music suddenly twists away from Finnish dance and into a jazz break with a Celtic edge, which in turn leads us back to Finland again, the whole thing handled with grace and elegance. Hannu Kella’s ’Minuet’ is a beautiful, lytical piece with fine piano playing from Pilvi Talvitie and guitarist Jani Kivelä. It’s an exaple of how sensitively different textures are treated throughout the album. Saxophones are so often misplaced and misused in traditional music projects but Joakim Berghäll is a true role model – just listen to the final ’Haave...’ or ’Valse du Caribou’.
The eight-piece band provide a wealth of musical riches, and producer Roger Tallroth has brought a truly masterful touch to the sound. Bands about to embark on a recording take a note: this is a lesson in how to make the perfect album.


- SONGLINES (2008)

Con Friskis & Svettis il gruppo folk finlandese cattura immediatamente l’attenzione del pubblico. Con Casino, Tulin ja Hannum häävalssi e Hotas lo sorprende grazie all’efficace miscela tra sonorità progressive-folk e melodie romantiche.

Modica, 18/05/2009

Hanno portato al Teatro Garibaldi di Modica un’energia davvero speciale e hanno fatto assaporare al pubblico The Entertainer le atmosfere che saranno del Festival Note di Notte: ritmo, allegria, divertimento, voglia di ballare e tanta buona musica.

Gli otto componenti di Tsuumi Sound System - Tommi Asplund (fiddle), Esko Järvelä (fiddle, violino, suoni campionati), Pilvi Talvities (pianoforte, armonium), Hannu Kella (fisarmonica), Jani Kivelä (chitarre), Joakim Berghäll (sassofoni, percussioni), Tarmo Anttila (contrabbasso) e Jussi Nikula (percussioni, batteria) – hanno chiuso la prima parte della Stagione 2009, organizzata dall’Associazione diretta da Mariolina Marino, portando sul palco suoni potenti e grintosi su un tessuto musicale ricco di echi tradizionali e fortemente evocativo.

Con Friskis & Svettis il gruppo finlandese cattura immediatamente l’attenzione del pubblico. Con Casino, Tulin ja Hannum häävalssi e Hotas, brano che ha dato il nome sia all’ultimo lavoro discografico del gruppo che al concerto, lo sorprende grazie all’efficace miscela tra sonorità progressive-folk e melodie romantiche.
Brano dopo brano, il concerto scivola frizzante tra le note coinvolgenti di Tango private, Korento, Grown up Roger, Taivaan Korsaaja e Hilsainen mieli.
E ancora, tra quelle di Katu, Huuma, Economy samba, September e Valse du Caribou. Con il denominatore comune di essere tutte composizioni originali del gruppo, ogni brano ha un carattere differente: alle atmosfere dei paesaggi fiabeschi della terra di Babbo Natale si aggiungono pennellate ora latine ora anglosassoni; tra i ritmi delle danze tradizionali scandinave emergono i toni avvolgenti di una ballad.

Gli Tsuumi fanno circolare molta energia sul palco e l’intesa è perfetta. Pahna, Polke efteria, Rec.32 e Meteor sono gli ultimi brani proposti. Il concerto si chiude tra gli applausi con la richiesta, accontentata, di un bis. The Entertainer si congeda temporaneamente dal pubblico per mettere a punto i dettagli del calendario dell’ottava edizione del Festival Note di Notte.

Modica 18 maggio 2009

Ufficio Stampa
Stefania Pilato 338 2343355
stefaniapilato@gmail.com
Francesco Micalizzi 339 2878013
fmicalizzi@hotmail.com
- Notedinotte (Sicily)

Nella musica finlandese di radice tradizionale non è mai mancata una grande tensione alla ricerca dell'energia e del pathos. Emblematica è la passione per il tango che molti musicisti di questo paese hanno rivisitato in maniera personale. Con Tsuumi Sound System, un supergruppo di otto elementi siamo di fronte ad una proposta di straordinario impatto che si è affermata in breve tempo come il nuovo brand nordico nel mondo della musica etnica. La formula è sempre la stessa ovvero attingere dai patrimoni etnici come risorsa creativa e mantenere un saldo ancoraggio alla dimensione acustica che però viene arricchita con timbriche più moderne e una sezione ritmica importante. Dal vivo il gruppo è capace di esprimere un'energia vulcanica, un virtuosismo e nel contempo un'eleganza che sono capaci di coinvolgere qualsiasi pubblico. Con il loro quinto album, HOTAS (Aito Records, 2007), prodotto con l'assistenza tecnica di Roger Tallroth, sono riusciti a catturare anche in studio la forza che promana dai loro live act. La figura centrale di questo gruppo è Hannu Kella, uno dei grandi maestri finlandesi di fisarmonica, ma l'alto livello di tutti i musicisti dimostra la validità del sistema formativo finlandese che ha dato enorme importanza alla musica etnica.
- Itinerari Folk/Trento (Italy)