Vajas (meaning ''echo'' in North Sámi) was a

Sámi The Sámi ( ; also spelled Sami or Saami) are a Finno-Ugric-speaking people inhabiting the region of Sápmi (formerly known as Lapland), which today encompasses large northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland, and of the Murmansk Oblast, Ru ...

- Norwegian band with

Kristin Mellem Kristin Mellem (born 21 March 1965) is a Norwegian musician ( violin), composer and conductor known for her involvement in Northern Norway's musical scene. She was educated at and Bergen Music Conservatory (1984–1990) and has worked as a ...

on violin and vocals, Nils Johansen on guitars, computers and synthesizers and the famous Sami ethnic

yoik A joik or yoik (anglicised, where the latter spelling in English conforms with the pronunciation; also named , , , or in the Sámi languages) is a traditional form of song in Sámi music performed by the Sámi people of Sapmi in Northern Europ ...

Ánde Somby Ánde Somby, born in Buolbmat, Norway, is a traditional Sami joik artist and an associate professor at the Faculty of Law at the University of Tromsø, specializing in Indigenous Rights Law. Somby has been active yoiker since 1974. He has also ...

on vocals and yoik (or joik, a type of traditional chanting or singing). The band debuted in 2003 and toured internationally. In October 2006 Vajas released its first album, ''Sacred Stone''. The band is currently working on getting the release distributed in Germany and the UK with other countries to follow. In 2009, a minor

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

fad involved remaking or lipsynching to the song "Sparrow of the Wind".

Band members

is a classically trained composer and violinist who has done a lot of musical projects. She has composed and performed music both in smaller settings and with full orchestras.

is both a traditional and non-traditional Sami yoiker (joiker) and has been performing since the late seventies. Somby also has a Ph.D. in Law and is a busy academic, employed at the

University of Tromsø The University of Tromsø – The Arctic University of Norway ( Norwegian: ''Universitetet i Tromsø – Norges arktiske universitet''; Northern Sami: ''Romssa universitehta – Norgga árktalaš universitehta'') is a state university in Norway ...

in Norway. Nils Johansen is a musician, composer, artist and multiinstrumentalist and is also a member of the Norwegian pop/indie duo ''

Bel Canto Bel canto (Italian for "beautiful singing" or "beautiful song", )—with several similar constructions (''bellezze del canto'', ''bell'arte del canto'')—is a term with several meanings that relate to Italian singing. The phrase was not associat ...

''. Johansen has been a part of the international music industry since the mid eighties and has composed music for film, television and for full orchestras. He wrote the opening number to the debut of the Norwegian radio channel P3 and has done a lot of musical work outside his two bands.

Personal life

Somby lived with Kristin Mellem from 2003 to 2007 and have one child together, born in 2005. From a former marriage Somby has two children, born in 1980 and 1988. Somby is the father of Lawra Somby, who yoiks in the duo Adjagas.

References

Discography

* 2006 ''Sacred stone'', Vaj AS/Musikkoperatørene, Norway

External links

*
Vajas' English profile page on MySpace.com with songs and a videoÁnde Somby's English profile page on MySpace.comNils Johansen's English Bel Canto profile page on MySpace.com
Norwegian musical groups {{Norway-band-stub