Viola Turpeinen joined Abba in the US with a Finnish polka

What common on In that With Dancing QueenBlondia With Parallel Lines, Bobby McFerrinin Don’t Worry, Be Happylla and Viola Turpeinen Kauhava’s polka?

The fact that all of these songs or albums have recently been included in the list of recordings of national significance maintained by the United States Library of Congress.

The National Recording Registry (NRR) is a list of recordings established by the US Congress in 2000 that are considered to be culturally, historically or aesthetically significant documents of US history.

“Every year, 25 new recordings are added to the list based on initiatives from different parties,” says the musicologist Pekka Gronow. The public also has the opportunity to make suggestions for it.

American-Finnish Viola Turpeinen is the first Finnish name on the list.

In that Arrival-album, for example, is thought to be significant in America, because it was that album that broke the ice in the United States as well. Arrival represents different aspects of the Abba sound: playfulness, melancholy and skillful production combined with the voices of female singers, stated in the justifications. They also state that Dancing Queen the uplifting feeling and groove will get even those without dancing skills on the floor: You Can Dance!

Dancing Queen known worldwide, Kauhavan’s polka then not so much.

Rarely remember even in Finland its performer Viola Turpeis (1909–1958).

From Youtube Kauhava’s polka available as an original recording:

Viola Turpeinen was born in Champion, Michigan in 1909. His mother (nee Viitala) was from the same place, his father had moved with his parents from Finland when he was three years old.

Viola Turpeinen started playing with a two-line accordion, and later moved to the piano accordion. Apparently Italian Pietro Deirolta Turpeine, who learned and performed with him, became a very popular musician among American Finns and more widely. She is known to be the first woman to record accordion solos.

The accordion has been neglected as an instrument, but it has been accompanied by strong emotions and life stories. Author Annie Proulx (Ship news, Brokeback Mountain) has photographed skillfully in his novel The Dangerous Accordion (Finnish 1999), how the accordion has carried the history of many immigrant groups to a new country.

A scoop of polka there is a reference in the same direction in the justifications for the fresh selection. They mention that Turpeinen’s music “reflected the melting pot of America with its mix of old and new as well as Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish and even Italian styles”.

”Miss Turpeinen” as a partner Kauhava’s polka played the violin, born in Elimäki in 1891 John Rosendahl (ok. Juho Wiren). He had moved to the United States in 1908. Rosendahl has been described as a handsome all-rounder who, in addition to being a musician, supported himself by painting advertising signs, acting, renting and showing films, and it is known that he also traded in securities.

Rosendahl was also a ladies’ man, who scored the women he charmed in his pocket calendar. Known for her fiery nature, Viola reportedly got full marks. American-Finnish musicians also became a couple. (And Rosendahl’s pocket calendar scores for women ended.)

A traditional melody that has now ended up in the selection of the Congress Kauhava’s polka was recorded on January 30, 1928.

The song offers the dancers a tight tempo. The reasons for the congressional list also state this: “In Kauhavan’s polka Turpeinen and Rosendahl seem to encourage each other as if with a dance suit, challenging the dancers to keep up with the pace.”

Peaty also visited Finland once, together with John Rosendahl in the spring of 1929.

The couple traveled to Finland on the Swedish ship M/S Gripsholm via Stockholm and performed, for example, in Helsinki at Vallila työväätalo and danced couples in Mustikkamaa. Finland was traveled as far as Viipur and Kemijärvi.

Turpeinen and Rosendahl also played as an accordion trio for a while Sylvia Polson with. The group broke up in the middle of a tour in 1931. The reason was apparently love affairs, as Rosendahl is known to have fallen in love with “the accordion So did Greta Garbok” called Polso. Turpeinen’s playing feeling as part of the trio ended.

Rosendahl’s life ended in an accident in New York. In December 1932, he slipped on the stairs after taking a bath and died of his injuries. Sylvia Polso (1911–1996) lived a colorful life not only as a musician, but also as a beauty queen and graced competitive dancer.

Turpeinen, on the other hand, got married William Syrjälän with. Born in Vesivehmaa, Syrjälä (1898–1993) was one of the most legendary American-Finnish dance musicians and had a playing career spanning nearly 80 years. Viola Turpeinen died of cancer in Lake Worth, Florida in 1958.

In the story is the stuff of a movie! A documentary about Viola Turpeinen’s life has been in the works, but due to a lack of funding, the project is now resting, says the director Päivi Takala. The production company in the project is Illume Oy.

“We’ve shot a bit in Michigan and got to know the archival material, which is huge in Hancock,” says Takala.

The cooperation partner is an accordion player Riitta Kossiwho once completed his final artistic work at the Sibelius Academy on Viola Turpeine.

“It has been bothering me for a long time how poorly known Turpeinen is. Hiski Salomaa is known, even though he only made a few recordings,” says Takala.

American Finn, sang with a characteristic creaky voice Hiski Salomaa (1891–1957) is especially remembered The log of the west from the song. In total, he recorded 18 songs, while Viola Turpeinen has recorded more than 90 songs.

HS wrote About “America’s hanuri princess” widely 20 years ago. That’s when his recording was released on four CDs. The Society of Foreign Finns Culture operating in Riihimäki is collected comprehensive material Viola from Turpeise: magazine clippings, photos and audio recordings.

A scoop of polka you In that Frank Sinatran, Santanan and the list of others, now already 200 recordings, was long. The central figure has been a professor emeritus, an expert in traditional music James ”Jim” P. Leary. He says by e-mail that for three years he has been a representative of the American Folklore Society (AFS) on the council, which makes presentations to the register.

“Since no one knew Viola from before, it was a challenge to educate and convince everyone,” Leary mentions.

On April 16, Leary learned he had succeeded when the latest songs on the list were announced.

“I was surprised and delighted when I found out that Viola Kauhava’s polka had been included,” says Leary. “Most of the approved recordings are from well-known pop stars.”

in northern Wisconsin born Leary has been researching musicians from the American Midwest since the 1970s.

“The Finns were the most active and musically diverse performers in the region, and even though Viola had been dead for over 20 years, she was remembered and loved,” says Leary. “Accordion players played the songs he performed, and some of the LPs were still for sale in local stores.”

Leary couldn’t find much written material about Viola Turpeine, so he wrote the essay himself. Since then, Leary has also influenced, among other things J. Karjalainen of the Lännen Jukka project in the background.

From Turpeinen’s software you can find a large number of pedals, each one tighter than the other. One of the most famous is Elli’s polka (trad.). In the attached YouTube video, it plays as played by Turpeinen in 1953.

Leary ended up proposing the congressional list, however Kauhavan’s polka, because according to him it was the best known Finnish dance melody in the Central West region.

Another familiar melody bursts out of the song as a surprise in the middle of everything: Sons of Karelia -polka in the middle section.

Viola Turpeinen’s playing style comes out well in the recording. “He played lushly and cheerfully. You can hear that the emotions are strongly involved when Viola lets go”, characterizes Riitta Kossi.

Peat rose as the first musician of Finnish background to be listed in the Library of Congress, but Leary has more surprises up his sleeve: the list of 25 recordings includes other musicians of Finnish background.

Listed by Leary’s compilation The Wisconsin Folksong -collection from the years 1937–46, according to him, has American-Finnish performances. In addition, the Jefferson Airplane band’s album has been added to the list Surrealistic Pillow (1967).

It is played by a guitarist-singer of Finnish background Jorma Kaukonen (s. 1940). Changed style since then In a short interview, Kaukonen also gets a glimpse of the library’s new selections on video.

In addition to the interviews, Toivo Tamminen’s and Simo Westerholm’s texts with recordings by Viola Turpeinen, American Hanuriprinsesa vol. 1–4, published by the Folk Music Institute, Finnish Sound Archive and Artie Music, 2002–2004, are the source of the writing.