The brass septet tradition in Finland

In the autumn of 1975, some research began in Finland which aimed at the collection and publishing of the brass septet tradition. The research was made by a team, the members of which are: Arvo Kuikka, head of the Finnish military bands; Holger Fransman, professor of horn at the Sibelius Academy; Olavi Lampinen, trombonist and dir. of music; and Kauko Karjalainen, M.A., the executive secretary of the Finnish Music Information Centre. In this article Kauko Karjalainen tells us some results of the research and about the first stages of brass septet playing, which is still quite strong in Finland.

Today the Finnish brass septet tradition is more than one hundred years old. The oldest brass septet which the team discovered was founded in Tervakoski in 1872. This septet is still continuing its work.

Altogether there are about 200 brass septets which our research has uncovered. Most of these were founded at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. No doubt the Finnish song and playing festivals were the reason for the enthusiasm among the amateur brass players for their septets. At the very first festival in Jyväskylä in 1884 there were six participating ensembles although over 40 bands had been invited. The idea of the festivals came from Estonia, but the playing ideals were taken over from the military bands and German brass groups which were then playing in Finland.