Biography All Music Guide Wikipedia
All Music Guide:
Kurki-Suonio teaches at the folk music department at the Sibelius Academy in Finland and is best known abroad for her work with Swedish-Finnish group Hedningarna (the Heathens). She has worked with many choirs, including the Finnish Octopus Choir. Her music spans the folk-rooted work of Hedningarna to jazz, children's music, tango and art rock. She took a break from Hedningarna during the period in which they recorded Hippjokk in order to concentrate on her studies and spend more time with her children and family. However, she returned for the recording of Karelia Visa.
Wikipedia:
Sanna Kurki-Suonio (born 1966) is a Finnish singer, kantele player and composer in the contemporary folk / neo-folk music genre. She is probably most well known for her work with the band Hedningarna, which extended over eight years between 1991 and 1999. She was also a founding member of the group Loituma.
After her first solo album, Musta, was released in 1998, she toured the United States and Europe with Swedish viola player Magnus Stinnerbom. Since then, she has composed the Kalevala 150th Anniversary concert (working with Finnish rock star A. W. Yrjänä), and has contributed to recordings by Ismo Alanko, Pekka Lehti, Hannu Saha, Transjoik, Frode Fjellheim, Tellu Turkka and the Tapiola Chamber Choir. She recently completed a new album, Kainuu, with kantele player Riitta Huttunen.
Sanna taught singing at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki until 2002. Now she teaches at the Academy in Joensuu.
