An alternative to air guitars: the Finnish table drumming championship is contested again

Finland this summer’s special championships are joined by the table drumming championships organized in Joensuu this summer.

The event is not the first of its kind, as Finland’s best table drummers already competed in the championships organized at the Tavastia club in Helsinki several years ago in the early 2000s. Now the competitions have been revived after a 17-year hiatus.

The table drumming contests are distantly related to the Air Guitar World Championships held in Oulu since 1996, but while the air guitar is a purely imaginary instrument, in table drumming the competitors actually drum with their hands on a pulpit. In addition, the pulpit is placed on a wooden platform, which the player can knock down to imitate the sound of a bass drum.

21st century In the first table drumming competition, the finalists included several drummers and professional musicians from active bands. In the tough final of 2006, they faced each other today in Popeda Lacu Lahtinen and long-time drummer for the Von Hertzen Brothers Mikko Kaakkuriniemiwho took the championship.

This year, the preliminaries of the games have been made based on videos, and ten table drummers have made it to the finals. The winner will receive an entire real drum kit as a prize.

The Table Drumming Championship will be held on July 11 at the Joensuu market, and the event is free to enter.