![JPP Areenalla](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/JPP_Areenalla.jpeg)
J.P.P. is a group of
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
folk musicians
Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...
from
Kaustinen
Kaustinen ( sv, Kaustby) is a municipality of Finland. It is part of the Central Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population about 4300 and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is .
Neighbouring municipalities ...
. The group still uses the Kaustinen traditional settings with
fiddles,
harmonium
The pump organ is a type of free-reed organ that generates sound as air flows past a vibrating piece of thin metal in a frame. The piece of metal is called a reed. Specific types of pump organ include the reed organ, harmonium, and melodeon. Th ...
and
double bass
The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar i ...
, although their arrangements are more advanced than those of earlier generations of traditional musicians in the area. The group's repertoire consists of traditional tunes, as well as newly-composed music in old-style dance rhythms --
polskas,
waltz
The waltz ( ), meaning "to roll or revolve") is a ballroom and folk dance, normally in triple ( time), performed primarily in closed position.
History
There are many references to a sliding or gliding dance that would evolve into the w ...
es,
schottisches, etc. -- as well as some Finnish-style
tangos
Tangos may refer to:
* "Tangos" (song), a song popularized in Spain
* Tangos (district), a district or barangay in Navotas, Philippines
* ''Tangos'' (album), a 1973 album by Buenos Aires 8
* ''Tangos'' (Rubén Blades album), a 2014 album by Ru ...
, and some
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...
and
bluegrass influences too.
''Järvelän Pikkupelimannit'' began in the early 1980s as an offshoot of the group ''Järvelän Pelimannit'', which consisted mainly of older musicians (in Finnish ''pelimanni'') from the village of
Järvelä. The group's original full name, literally "Little Fiddlers of Järvelä," was abbreviated "JPP," which then became the group's official name. JPP further developed local musical tradition with their innovative arrangements and, inspired by other folk music groups, played not only local tunes but also those from other parts of the country. Group members
Arto Järvelä and
Timo Alakotila
Timo Alakotila is a Finnish composer, arranger, and musician born 15 July 1959.
Career
Timo Alakotila's range of music styles stretches from Finnish folk music of the '' pelimanni'' style over some jazz influences to more or less Finnish s ...
have been mainly responsible for the group's original compositions and arrangements.
Most of the members have studied at the
Sibelius-Akatemia University, mainly at the folk music department. For many years the band consisted of brothers Jouni and Arto Järvelä, who are fourth-generation folk musicians from
Järvelä, their uncle
Mauno Järvelä and Jarmo and Juha Varila on fiddles, Timo Alakotila on harmonium, and
Janne Virkkala on double bass. Jouni Järvelä and the Varila brothers were later succeeded by Matti Mäkelä and
Tommi Pyykönen, first on tours and then also on recordings.
Antti Järvelä followed
Timo Myllykangas on bass.
While JPP releases fewer recordings today than in its early years, the group still tours in both Europe and North America, mainly performing at folk music/
world music festivals. Group members have several additional projects, especially Arto Järvelä and Tima Alakotila who are involved in many other groups, both pure folk music and fusions with other styles. Mauno Järvelä, who used to play in
symphony orchestra, is currently very active as a teacher of
violin
The violin, sometimes known as a '' fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone ( string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument ( soprano) in the family in regu ...
and pelimanni music. His method of teaching children to play violin, related to the
Suzuki method, is nicknamed ''the sisuki method''!
Records
* ''Järvelän Pikkupelimannit'', 1983 (EP)
* ''Laitisen Mankeliska'', 1986
* ''JPP'', 1988 (double LP)
* ''I've Found a New Tango'', 1990
* ''Pirun Polska/Devil's polska'', 1992
* ''Kaustinen Rhapsody'', 1994
* ''String Tease'', 1998
* ''History'', 1999 (compilation)
* ''Huutokatrilli!'', 2001 (mini-CD with dance music)
* ''Artology'', 2006
External links
Official homepageThe JPP on hoedown.comTVfolk.net(Video, search under "Finland")
{{Authority control
Finnish folk musical groups
Finnish world music groups