Soila Sariola

It all started when I was born into a musical family in Helsinki in1977. Our home was awash with different musical styles: my father Raimo is a classical cellist and my mother Eeva-Leena composes children's music. Folk music has also been a part of my life through my maternal grandparents Martti and Marjatta Pokela, and through my own mother. I started with the violin at the age of seven but switched to the saxophone as a teenager. I have played the piano for my own and others' delectation practically all my life. In the Sibelius Academy, kantele and harmonium became my main instruments.

My signing career began when I joined the Tapiola choir in 1988. I became interested in folk singing styles through the choir and I got acquainted with archive tapes and archaic song materials for the first time in my life. In the Sibelius upper secondary school we had a singing ensemble that experimented with singing with a deep breast sound and stronger vocal techniques. After upper secondary school I became increasingly interested in vocal production and cultural heritage. I was accepted in the Ostrobothnian conservatory in 1996 with singing as my major subject, and the next year in the Sibelius Academy.

Folk music studies paved the way for improvisation, with Anna-Kaisa Liedes, Heikki Laitinen and Outi Pulkkinen as my main teachers. Outi's role in my improvisation project has been greatest and with her I am also closest. Without such a personal, long-term relationship I would not probably have been able to do all this.

I graduated with a Master of Arts in Music in 2005. Since 2004, my main job has been the vocal ensemble Rajaton (translates as Boundless) where I sing alto. My other ensembles include Käpy where I compose, sing and play the kantele and duo Comé, which is an experimental vocal-accordion combo, characterised by strong expression, with Anne-Mari Kivimäki.