Aallotar Concert

October 6, 7:00 pm

The name Aallotar, meaning “wave maiden” comes from a character in Finland’s national epic “Kalevala”. The Aallotar name has graced the hulls of Finnish ships for centuries – ships that separated the ancestors of Aallotar’s members. One hundred years ago, the families of Pajunen and Niku lived in the same area of Finland: speaking the same language, playing the same music, eating and drinking the same culture. Then the immigration of hundreds of thousands of Finns from 1870-1930 found Pajunen’s ancestors relocating to Northern Minnesota, while Niku’s family remained in Finland. Now, in the 21st century, Aallotar revisits the common musical ground the women share, but also revels in the cultural differences born when an ocean and the passage of time separate a lineage.

Aallotar Music