Paper short abstract:

In northern Fennoscandia has the Sámi people always been a part of the landscape. Yoiking (singing) its land, the forest, lakes, mountains, rivers is to be connected with history and ancestors. How can we use old recordings to do analysis of what music and text really tell us.

Paper long abstract:

The Sámi of northern Sweden has lived for generations in the Arctic and sub-Arctic area, subsisting on traditional hunting, fishing and reindeer husbandry. During the 19th century the competition of land with newcomers and settlers arise. Due to legislation 1886, Sámi lost their land (skatteland) they had paid taxes for centuries and the culture were under pressure, the language lost its position as a major communication between people. New lifestyles were enforced. In the 20th century extractive industries like mining companies, forest industry and tourism increased, affecting traditional livelihood. However, thanks to 20th century researcher like the first Sámi professor Israel Ruong we have a rich archival material as early recordings of stories and songs in the native language. This paper proposes to discuss how we can use sound recordings and careful analysis of both music and text, I intend to demonstrate the role of individual creativity in the yoik – the Sámi chanting, and by implication, the place of creative improvisation in the traditional genre of the yoik as a whole.