Village Anthems – Ikiaika is a music project where the authentic old folk music tradition meets contemporary music technology. Ikiaika combines the timeless sound of the kantele with modern musical expressions such as pop, world music, and experimental technology. The result is a unique alliance that simultaneously looks to the past and the future. The project is inherently inclusive: Ikiaika is a way of being in music. The sound of the kantele invites one to pause, listen, and experience. In participatory art events, the audience can take part in the creation of music. Playing leads to a silent enchantment that transcends time and place, where the mind calms and music flows freely.

Ikiaika’s experimental and boundary-transcending approach is represented by kantele artist Maija Kauhanen’s experimental works and hakosalo_tuohino’s modern kantele music, where the traditional instrument takes on a new role in the fields of sound art and music technology. In the artists’ experimental art, the kantele is not just an echo of history, but it transforms, stretches, and resonates in new contexts.

Electronic processes, live music, and improvisation merge with the sound of the kantele in a way that opens a new soundscape for the listener. The kantele is not confined to any genre. The music can be as much experimental pop as performative sound art. New approaches highlight the potential of the kantele as a shaper of music, not just its preserver.