Search - Loituma :: In the Moonlight

Using the kantele (not unlike a hammered dulcimer in sound), fiddle, and voices, this Finnish quartet shows great delicacy and stateliness--not to mention a fair slice of playfulness--on In the Moonlight. There's the sonorous, minimalist beauty of "The Bells of St. Michael's," the '30s harmonies of "Beach Cooing," and the impressionism of "Hearing His Beloved," all mixed in with some lovely dance music--dance as in minuets and polkas, not rave. Some wonderful playing, and a strong sense of light and shade, makes this an absolute joy. Like those of Värttinä, the members of Loituma are graduates of Finland's Folk Music Institute, and when you hear records as delightful as this, you'll think every country should have a similar institution. Play it and smile. --Chris Nickson