Rajaton
Background information
Origin	Helsinki, Finland
Genre(s)	a cappella/Choral/Pop
Years active	1997 – Present
Website	www.rajaton.net
Members
Essi Wuorela Virpi Moskari Soila Sariola Hannu Lepola Ahti Paunu Jussi Chydenius

Rajaton is a Finnish a cappella choral ensemble, founded in Helsinki in 1997. The Finnish word rajaton means boundless, which is an indication of both the breadth of their repertoire, from sacred music to near Europop; and, according to their official website "the way Rajaton approaches music". ^[1] Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... Location of Helsinki in Northern Europe Coordinates: , Country Province Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki Charter 1550 Capital city 1812 Government  - City manager Jussi Pajunen Area  - City 187. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... A cappella music is vocal music or singing without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. ... This article is about choirs, musical ensembles containing singers. ... Bold text For popular forms of music in general, see Popular music. ... See also: 1996 in music, other events of 1997, 1998 in music, 1990s in music and the list of years in music // Events January 9 - David Bowie performs his 50th Birthday Bash concert (the day after his birthday) at Madison Square Garden, with guests Frank Black, The Foo Fighters, Sonic... The present is the time that is perceived directly, not as a recollection or a speculation. ... A cappella music is vocal music or singing without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. ... This article is about choirs, musical ensembles containing singers. ... Location of Helsinki in Northern Europe Coordinates: , Country Province Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki Charter 1550 Capital city 1812 Government  - City manager Jussi Pajunen Area  - City 187. ... For the band, see 1997 (band). ... Europop refers to a style of pop music that developed in Europe throughout the 1970s which emphasized catchy beats, slick songs and frothy lyrics. ...

Rajaton performs primarily in Finland but also tours around Europe and the rest of the world. Performances in North America are rare, but Rajaton appears regularly in St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada for the Festival 500 choral festival, and was the guest artist at the Kaleid Choral Festival in Woodstock, Ontario in 2005 and 2006. Rajaton's fan following has grown substantially since 2002. In 2005, Rajaton album sales reached 100,000 worldwide as their album Kevät went gold. St. ... // FESTIVAL 500 Sharing the Voices first made its debut in 1997 as one of the anchor events of the John Cabot Anniversary Celebrations, commemorating 500 years of European discovery in North America. ... Woodstock (2005 population: 34,000) is a city and the county seat of Oxford County in southwestern Ontario, Canada. ... This article lacks information on the importance of the subject matter. ...

Rajaton also includes original material in their repertoire: aside from works by composers such as Mia Makaroff, Laura Sippola and Anna-Mari Kähärä, some of their pieces are written or arranged by members of the ensemble. Many lyrics are adapted from the Kanteletar.

Members

The six members of the group are:

• Soprano: Essi Wuorela
• Soprano: Virpi Moskari
• Alto: Soila Sariola
• Tenor: Hannu Lepola
• Baritone: Ahti Paunu
• Bass: Jussi Chydenius

This article is about the singing voice part. ... Essi Wuorela a. ... This article is about the singing voice part. ... Virpi Moskari is the 2nd Soprano in the a capella Finnish group, Rajaton. ... In music, an alto or contralto is a singer with a vocal range somewhere between a tenor and a mezzo-soprano. ... Soila Sariola is the alto in the Finnish a cappella group, Rajaton. ... This article is about Tenor vocalists in music. ... // Hannu Lepola is a Tenor vocalist in the a cappella choral ensemble Rajaton, from Finland. ... Baritone (French: ; German: ; Italian: ) is most commonly the type of male voice that lies between bass and tenor. ... Ahti Paunu (born November 27, 1975, Espoo), baritone in vocal emsemble Rajaton. ... A bass (or basso in Italian) is a male singer who sings in the deepest vocal range of the human voice. ... Jussi Chydenius (born 30th December 1972) is a Finnish musician who has played drums in band Don Huonot and sang basso in vocal ensemble Rajaton. ...

Discography

• Maa (October 2007)

Rajaton celebrates its tenth anniversary by a new album with new songs composed to Finnish poetry. Album includes also a new a cappella arrangement of Jean Sibelius' Valse Triste.

• Rajaton sings Abba with Lahti Symphony Orchestra (2006)

An English album containing enriched versions of Abba hits. Some tracks are pure a cappella Rajaton, while on others they are backed by the Lahti Symphony Orchestra.

• Out of Bounds (2006)

Mostly-English album containing two re-releases, three new versions of previously recorded songs, English versions (but not direct translations) of three Kevät songs, as well as three new tracks.

• Kevät (2005)

Pop album, entirely in Finnish. This CD is more rhythmically and harmonically complex than some of their others, and proudly boasts the fact that the group does not use any instruments despite the many instrument-like sounds on the album.

• Joulu DVD (2004)

DVD of a live concert recording featuring songs from the Joulu CD, as well as some bonus features.

• Joulu (2003)

Rajaton's Christmas album, containing two CDs, and featuring many songs sung in Finnish and arranged for Rajaton.

• Sanat (2002)

Rajaton's religious album. It features music in 4 different languages, all relating to Christianity. The album consists of more mellow, flowing tracks. The word sanat means "words" in Finnish, and "heals" in Latin.

• Boundless (2001)

The first of two albums in which the majority of the songs are sung in English. The album featues a more popular style of music, with a focus on lively, fun songs.

• Nova (2000)

Folk music album featuring a mix of folk styles. Their first album.

October 2007 is the tenth month of that year and has yet to occur. ... Johan Julius Christian Jean / Janne Sibelius ( ; December 8, 1865 – September 20, 1957) was a Finnish composer of classical music and one of the most notable composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. ... Kuolema (Death) is a drama by Arvid Järnefelt, first performed in 1903. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Out of Bounds is an album by Finnish a cappella ensemble Rajaton, released in 2006. ... Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article lacks information on the importance of the subject matter. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Yule (disambiguation) and Jul (disambiguation). ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Sanat is an album by Finnish a cappella ensemble Rajaton, released in 2002. ... Also see: 2002 (number). ... Boundless is an album by Finnish a cappella ensemble Rajaton, released in 2001. ... Year 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 2001 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full 2000 Gregorian calendar). ...

References

External links

• official Rajaton website
• The Recorded A Cappella Review Board -- reviews of Rajaton CDs
• Rajaton Fan Club -- free forum for Rajaton discussion and information
• Rajaton at Last.fm