Kyllikki Solanterä (1908–1965) was a singer, vocal teacher and lyricist from Finland. She adapted many popular songs from other languages into Finnish.

Biography

Kyllikki was born 3 August 1908 as Kyllikki Wegelius in

Messukylä Messukylä ( sv, Messukylä, also ) is a former municipality of Finland which was annexed by the city of Tampere in 1947. The medieval stone church (built c. 1540) in Messukylä is the oldest building in Tampere. During the Civil War (1918), Mess ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, the youngest of the three children of gardener Ilmari Wegelius and his wife Elli Liukkonen. She performed under a variety of pseudonyms, including Donna, Kristiina, T. Nuoli, and K. Sara as well as her real name. On 3 August 1929, she married the musician Lauri Mattias Solanterä, formerly Solander, (1902–1977). She studied languages at the University of Helsinki with the aim of completing a master's degree in languages. She studied singing as a private student of Lyli Wendelin (1933–38), and then attended the Helsinki Conservatoire (1935–38), now the

Sibelius Academy The Sibelius Academy ( fi, Taideyliopiston Sibelius-Akatemia, sv, Sibelius-Akademin vid Konstuniversitetet) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It als ...

. In 1946, she made a study trip to Sweden.

Concerts

Solanterä gave her first concert at the University of Helsinki Ballroom on November 3, 1936, followed by many more. From 1950 to 1951 she sang on a concert tour that visited

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and

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. She also performed on radio 20 times between 1937 and 1951, accompanied by a studio orchestra or various pianists. The sound of Solanterä's voice is preserved on only two "78-round discs," each featuring Matti Lehtinen on both sides. On the recordings, originally from the movie ''Alice in Wonderland,'' she performs songs "Good Advice" and "Summer Day Golden" accompanied by the HMV Orchestra conducted by Ensio Kosta. Her best-known lyrics include "The Little Duckling" (by Bernard Zaritsky) recorded by the Kippar Quartet, and "Unforgettable Evening" by Georg Ots and composed by Vasili Soloviev-Sedoi.

Teachings

Solanterä was a singing teacher for more than 25 years at the National Conservatory of Educational Organizations from 1937 to 1963, and from 1937 on, she was a private voice teacher and a lecturer in Finnish Music Teachers' Union courses.

Death

Solanterä died 12 November 1965 in Helsinki at 57 years of age, and she is buried in Honkanummi cemetery in

Vantaa Vantaa (; sv, Vanda, ) is a city and Municipalities of Finland, municipality in Finland. It is part of the inner core of the Greater Helsinki, Finnish Capital Region along with Helsinki, Espoo, and Kauniainen. With a population of (), Vantaa i ...

. She is remembered for her holiday music, "Kyllikki Solanterä has made musical magic for Christmas. Renditions of songs like ''Oi jouluyö'' make us merry and bright every year!"

Songs adapted to Finnish

She was both a lyricist and translator of orchestral Finnish works by

Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and 20th-century classical music, early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest com ...

and others. Her adaptations were many. She wrote the Finnish version of the lyrics for all of the following popular songs; all were written by Solanterä alone unless otherwise noted. For these adaptations, the Finnish title is shown on the left and the original language title is shown in parentheses. She adapted the songs from many languages, including English, German, Spanish, French, Russian and Scandinavian languages. * Amigo, (Amigo) * Cuanto le gusta, (Cuanto le gusta) * Enkelkellot, (Änglaklockor) * Hääkellot, (Hochzeitsglocken) * Hauva ikkunassa, (The Doggie in the Window) * Isabella, (Isabella) (Andalusische Märchen) * Itke en lemmen tähden, (Nur nicht aus Liebe weinen) * Josef Josef, (Yosel) * Jos sua lemmin rakkahin, (Mind if I Make Love to You) * Jussin tango, (O'Malley's Tango) * Kentucky valssi, (Kentucky Waltz) * Kun yö on valoton, (A media luz) * Läpi seinien, (In the Middle of the House) * Lemmen paula, (True Love) * Lemmentuskissasi, (Me lo dijo Adela) * Liisa Ihmemaassa, (Alice in Wonderland) (adapted by

M.A. Numminen Mauri Antero Numminen (born 12 March 1940 in Somero, Southwest Finland) is a Finnish artist who has worked in several different fields of music and culture. Biography In the 1960s, Numminen was known particularly as an avantgarde, underground ar ...

, Kyllikki Solanterä) * Mä päivänsäteen näin kerran pienen, (You Are My Sunshine) * Miks' tämän mulle teit, (Singing the Blues) * Odotus, (Unchained Melody) * Oi jouluyö, (Minuit, chrétiens) * Onni, (Lyckan) * On syömmein lemmensairas, (Mein Herz sehnt sich nach Liebe) * Päivänsäde, (You Are My Sunshine) * Päivä viel' koittaapi, (Some Sunday Morning) * Pieni ankanpoikanen, (The Little White Duck) * Särjetyn sydämen hotelli, (Heartbreak Hotel) * Sireenien aikaan, (Wenn der weiße Flieder wieder blüht) * Soittoniekka, (Spelmannen) * Sua lemmin, Samantha, (I Love You, Samantha) * Syysserenadi, (Concerto d'autunno) * Unelma tango, (Le tango du rêve) * Unohtumaton ilta, (Подмосковные вечера) ) * Unten pursi, (Dreamboat) * Uusi huomen, (Tomorrow)

References

External sources

* ''Otava Great Music Encyclopedia'' 5, p. 291. Otava, Helsinki 1979.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Solantera, Kyllikki 1908 births 1965 deaths Musicians from Helsinki Sibelius Academy alumni 20th-century Finnish women singers Finnish lyricists