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The stories of the Kalevala go back to ancient times, probably Bronze age. They tell of the creation of the world, of heroes, heroines and supernatural beings and their adventures.
In the late 1800 Elias Lonnroth traveled all through Finland visiting remote villages where the very ancient way of singing mythological stories was still a living tradition. He noted down as many stories as he could and later assembled them into what today is known as the Epic of Kalevala.
The Theft of Fire and Light
When the old Vainamoinen played on his Kantele, that instrument made out of the jawbone of a pike and with strings of a horse's mane, when he played everybody just had to listen, even the sun and the moon.
Louhi, the gap-toothed hag of the North, then got hold of the sun, she caught the moon with her hands and she brought them straight back home to the dark North land. She hid the sun from shining into a bright breasted rock and she sung the moon from gleaming into a mountain of steel. Then she stole the fire from all the cabins. And now it was night; perpetual, long, pitch dark night ...
Everybody was cold. Even God felt cold. So he struck fire on his fingernails to start a new sun and a new moon. But the spark of fire flared up and escaped. It wrought terrible damage all through the world, until it was swallowed by a fish.
Through the courage and wisdom of the old Vainamoinen the fire was tamed and eventually the sun and the moon were also freed.
The Wanton Lemminkainen
Lemminkainen is jealous. His wife has gone out dancing while he was out fishing! He sets off to find another wife. He travels to the dark North to win one of the daughters of Louhi the gap-toothed hag of the North. She makes him do heroic deeds to put him to a test. During one of these adventures Lemminkainen gets killed by a snakebite and cut into pieces by the gods of death.
But his mother comes to his rescue. She puts him together again, wakes him up and brings him back home.
In the late 1800 Elias Lonnroth traveled all through Finland visiting remote villages where the very ancient way of singing mythological stories was still a living tradition. He noted down as many stories as he could and later assembled them into what today is known as the Epic of Kalevala.
The Theft of Fire and Light
When the old Vainamoinen played on his Kantele, that instrument made out of the jawbone of a pike and with strings of a horse's mane, when he played everybody just had to listen, even the sun and the moon.
Louhi, the gap-toothed hag of the North, then got hold of the sun, she caught the moon with her hands and she brought them straight back home to the dark North land. She hid the sun from shining into a bright breasted rock and she sung the moon from gleaming into a mountain of steel. Then she stole the fire from all the cabins. And now it was night; perpetual, long, pitch dark night ...
Everybody was cold. Even God felt cold. So he struck fire on his fingernails to start a new sun and a new moon. But the spark of fire flared up and escaped. It wrought terrible damage all through the world, until it was swallowed by a fish.
Through the courage and wisdom of the old Vainamoinen the fire was tamed and eventually the sun and the moon were also freed.
The Wanton Lemminkainen
Lemminkainen is jealous. His wife has gone out dancing while he was out fishing! He sets off to find another wife. He travels to the dark North to win one of the daughters of Louhi the gap-toothed hag of the North. She makes him do heroic deeds to put him to a test. During one of these adventures Lemminkainen gets killed by a snakebite and cut into pieces by the gods of death.
But his mother comes to his rescue. She puts him together again, wakes him up and brings him back home.
Contact us to book a performance:
Scott and Johanna Hongell-Darsee
(505) 294-4567
jhdarsee@yahoo.com
