Apr 20: Mari Boine

Back in the 1990s when Real World records was originally founded by Peter Gabriel almost every album they released was a banger.

Gula Gula was an album which introduced many, including me, to the voice of Mari Boine (Persen).

The album cover was particularly striking. I bought it from Virgin Records in Sheffield - which was excellent...

Mari Boine is a Sami.

The Sami or Sapmi are people who live in territories which are crossed by the borders between Russia, Norway, Sweden and Finland. 

Also check out her vocals on a fantastic piece of music by Jan Garbarek, who will appear quite a lot on this blog across the year.

This is called Aftenlandet ('Evening Land') and is the final track on the album 'Visible World' which came out in 199

This video was apparently made for the Winter Olympics.

 

AFTENLANDET (the Evening Land) by Erik Poppe. (1994) Music by Jan Garbarek and Mari Boine. from Erik Poppe on Vimeo.
Made by comission for NRK and the Winter Olympics in 1994. Scripted and directed by Erik Poppe. 

Music written and performed by Jan Garbarek and Mari Boine.

A particular powerful song is Duinne.

The song Duinne by Mari Boine is sung in Sami, the language spoken by the Sami people, the indigenous people of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. The lyrics are about the connection between the land and the people who live on it. It describes the deep connection that the singer has with the land, and how it has shaped her identity. 

She sings about the mountains, the rivers, and the sky, and how they have influenced her life in many ways.

The meaning is explained here.