Songs of Nordic Biodiversity
A fragment of an ancient Finnish spell, calling up courage and strength. In Finnish, luonto also means nature. Folk musicians from Helsinki to Nuorgam sing so that it may rise.
The cause
In 2024 a group of Finland's best-known folk musicians gathered around the largest challenge of our time — the loss of biodiversity — and began writing songs in defence of the living world around them. Some became intimate anecdotes, others spectacular pieces for the whole company.
Traditional Finnish folk music is full of reminders that human life has always been bound to its ecosystems. The project carries that knowledge into the present: while protecting forests, the musicians also keep alive the rich, diverse ecosystem of the music itself.
artists and ensembles
songs written together
collaborative album released
per support ticket to forest protection
In pictures
Moments from the sold-out Helsinki Music Centre evening.
The founder
Nouse luonto was created and is produced by singer and folk musician Charlotta “Lotta” Hagfors. She currently performs in Berlin as the god of wind in Cirque du Soleil’s production ALIZÉ — the company’s first permanent resident show in Europe, and she is the first Finnish folk musician in a Cirque du Soleil production.
In the press
A real result
The proceeds of the sold-out Helsinki Music Centre concert in February 2026 were donated to the Finnish Nature Heritage Foundation — and they have now become a real, protected forest : Kimalaismetsä, the “Bumblebee Forest”, about two hectares of woodland in Kitee, North Karelia.
The forest is rich in aspens, willows and decaying wood, offering food and shelter especially for pollinating insects. Its protection was announced on Finnish Nature Day, 28 August 2026 — and it became the foundation’s 300th protected site in Finland.
This is what a ticket can do. The same model continues in Tampere, where the concert income aims to protect forests in the Pirkanmaa region.
Read the Yle news story (in Finnish)Concerts
The full company returns with local reinforcements, including Pekko Käppi, Suistamo Sähko. Production profit goes to forest protection in the Pirkanmaa region through the Finnish Nature Heritage Foundation.
TicketsA sold-out evening gathering fifteen artists and ensembles. Ten euros from every support ticket went in full to the Finnish Nature Heritage Foundation.
The collaborative Nouse luonto record was published, collecting the songs written during the 2024 sessions. It remains the heart of the live programme.
The project's first joint concert, part of the cathedral's Sustainable Future month. Songs written for the theme received their premieres — sung in Finnish, Swedish and Romani — before being released as the 2025 album.
Folk musicians from Helsinki to Nuorgam came together around biodiversity loss to write new songs and compositions — from intimate anecdotes to large ensemble pieces.
Artists
Flagship names of Finnish folk music alongside choirs, youth orchestras and young collectives. Line-ups vary from concert to concert.
Accordion
One of the most celebrated voices of Finnish accordion music, known worldwide for her lyrical playing.
Accordion
Boundary-breaking accordionist whose sound blends folk roots with electronics and physical stage presence.
Diatonic accordion, voice
Trance-like, breath-driven accordion music with a raw, rhythmic pulse.
Kantele, percussion, voice
A one-woman orchestra: kantele, foot percussion and voice woven into powerful songs.
Nordgrass band
Finnish-Norwegian fiddle band mixing Nordic folk with bluegrass energy.
Fiddle, voice
Fiddler and composer working across folk ensembles and new folk music.
Ensemble
Vocal-led group drawing on archaic Nordic and Sámi-influenced soundscapes.
Voice
Swedish-speaking Ostrobothnian singer with a deep-rooted, contemporary folk voice.
Voice
Singer and songwriter working in the Nordic folk tradition.
Ensemble
Young folk collective writing new music about growth, land and change.
Ensemble
Folk group whose name means 'root stump' — earthy, ensemble-driven sound.
Ensemble
Collective bringing choral and instrumental folk textures to the project.
Choir
Renowned Helsinki women's choir known for adventurous contemporary repertoire.
Youth folk orchestra
Children and young players from the Näppäri tradition of learning folk music by ear.
Voice, strings
Musician bringing Persian musical tradition into dialogue with Finnish folk.
Jouhikko, voice
Bowed-lyre player known for dark, electrified takes on archaic Finnish music.
Watch
Full-company finale from the sold-out February 2026 evening.
Contortionist Nyamka performs a spellbinding routine to “Sadejärvi,” played live by folk artists Maija Kauhanen and Olli Kari.
Collaborational song from the Finnish folk music artists on the album: Nouse luonto -lauluja monimuotoisuudesta
Part of the income from each concert is given, in full, to the Finnish Nature Heritage Foundation (Luonnonperintösäätiö), which uses the funds to buy and permanently protect old-growth forest. In Helsinki that meant ten euros from every support ticket; in Tampere the proceeds go to forests in the Pirkanmaa region.