BIO
KAMA Kollektiv is the qroup around young Finnish singer and trumpet player Kirsi-Marja “Kiki” Harju. The word KAMA is Finnish for “things” or “stuff”, and it describes what the band’s music is about: the small things in life that are often so easily overlooked.
Kiki tells stories – some in Finnish, some in English – about love and transformation, forests and animals, small everyday pleasures, and a mystical, romantic view of nature. The music is a mesmerizing mixture of jazz, Scandinavian folk and indie pop. It takes you on a journey to fabulous lands and intense emotions. The band is based in Amsterdam, but Kiki’s songs are full of memories of the beautiful landscapes, dark forests and the icy frost of her homeland, Finland.
KOTI is the title of KAMA Kollektiv’s first album, which is Finnish for “home.” The group’s four musicians grew up in Finland, Israel, Germany and the Netherlands, but they now all chose Amsterdam as their haven. Life experience has taught Kiki that home is more than a physical location. It is is a feeling, a conception and most importantly, trust. And, after all, the band mates’ friendship also creates a feeling of being home, away from home. We invite you to share that feeling through our concerts and music.
Bandleader, composer, vocalist and trumpetist Kiki, has an active and diverse background in the Finnish music scene, but the past 4 years she has spent in Amsterdam studying in the local conservatory. Throughout her career she has been interested and involved in projects that promote original material and unique fusions in music.
Jetse de Jong is young and versatile pianist from Arnhem, the Netherlands. Next to KAMA Kollektiv and his own trio (which is releasing its first album in the end of 2019) he is an active and popular session musician and involved in projects that represent large variety of musical genres.
Even though the Israeli drummer Yoad “Santeri” Korach has a jazz-based education, he took part throughout his carrier in a broad range of musical projects. With every new project he takes part in, he tries to incorporate all the different styles in order to make fresh and unique style.
Jonathan Nagel is trained as jazz bass player, but over the last years he has been active in various improvised and interdisciplinary performance contexts in the experimental art scenes of Berlin, Copenhagen and Amsterdam as well as all over Europe.
Kirsi Harju – trumpet, vocals, composition
Jetse de Jong – piano
Jonathan Nagel – double bass, composition
Yoad Korach – drums
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Instagram: kamakollektiv
KOTI - album out NOW!
You can find us also in iTunes, Amazon Music and many more platforms!
Want to get the CD or vinyl? Order here
Composers are not necessarily dead. They also do not necessarily write symphonies in D flat minor in a 4/4 time signature.
Tim Smith, frontman of the British band called Cardiacs is a great composer who wrote lots of music permeated with energy, humor, beauty, britishness.
By people who only partly open their ears (or their minds for that matter), his music has been defined being ‘chaotic’.
The opposite is true, however: it is strongly organised music and all one needs to be able to do is count past four (and not forget about prime numbers).
This challenging mix of punk, progrock, orchestral and live electronic music (also known as ‘pronk”) will be performed by BarmyFiveseveN; a small bigband from the Conservatorium van Amsterdam of around 15 players, armed with live electronic extensions.
"Pod, My My Look My Pod" in Youtube
KIKI-O is a sympathique and fresh Finnish band which plays Kirsi-Marja Harju's music. Songs are little tales of everyday life's little moments, and musically they are attempted to mix old and new. There are influences for example from jazz, pop and finnish folk music. Singing language is finnish. The band is formed in autumn 2013 in Helsinki. Individual, but still natural outcome arises from not only Harju's minds landscapes but also from every player's visions and influences, from musicalelements which band members have grown up with. Let us take you to a trip from crosswalks of Helsinki to Marian's grave, from there to snowy landscape and even all the way to the sun!
Kiki-O is:
Kirsi-Marja Harju: voice, trumpet, compositions and lyrics
Eetu Palomäki: piano
Maria Lamminen: bass
Otto Poutiainen: guitar
Johannes Pakkala: drums
Kiki-O in Soundcloud
Kiki-O's "Suojatie" in Youtube
Kiki-O's "Kuuletko?" in Youtube
Kiki-O in Facebook
Duo Kiki-J is fresh, original and professional duo with two people but four instruments: trumpet, vocals, piano and flute. With different combinations we are able to keep our repertoire always fresh and interesting. Jazz standards, classic pop songs with own arrangements, our own compositions…..you name it and this duo will make it unforgettable!
Duo Kiki-J:
Kirsi-Marja Harju: vocals, trumpet
Juho Valjakka: piano, flute
Waris band has raised from Mr. Waris’s love towards music and word art. Delicate but fierce pop/folk is going to take you for a trip to deep personal experience which is still universal in it’s humanity: love, nostalgia, furious exuberance. Humorous Finnophone compositions, with which is easy to identify yourself, are making you both laugh and set some tears.
Waris is:
Juuso Waris – vocals, acoustic guitar
Mikko Patama – keys, vocals
Heikki Hänninen – electric guitar, vocals
Philip Holm – bass, vocals
Joel Kallio – percussion,vocals
Aleksi Koivu – drums
Kirsi-Marja Harju – trumpet, vocals
More information, music and videos:
Viskain plays contemporary and original (Finnish) folk music with an unique instrumentation.
Kirsi-Marja Harju, trumpet and vocals
Jp Jyväsjärvi, guitar
Heta Kaipainen, accordion and vocals
Olli Saukko, mandolin
Events
Biography
Kirsi-Marja "Kiki" Harju (born in January 27th 1993) is a Finnish trumpet player, singer, composer, lyricist, band leader and producer. Since 2015 this multitalent has her main focus in her Bachelor of Arts- studies in Conservatorium van Amsterdam (CvA), jazz trumpet as her main subject and Jarmo Hoogendijk, Ruud Breuls and Jan Oosthof as her teachers, graduating in May 2019. Harju ended up in Amsterdam after starting trumpet playing in 2002 and doing music studies in The Music Institute of Porvoo, Sibelius high school and Pop & Jazz Conservatory in Helsinki. Her previous teachers have been Reijo Ruokonen, Leo Kylätasku, Tero Lindberg, Mikko Karjalainen, Raimo Korhonen, Tero Saarti and Jan Wessels. In Amsterdam Harju has enjoyed masterclasses and private lessons from world famous trumpet players, for example Terell Stafford, Ambrose Akinmusire and Alex Sipiagin. On top of that, Metropole Orchestra Academy projects/masterclasses have kept Harju busy during her studies in Amsterdam. Singing has always been as passion for Harju, and it has been as big part of her life as trumpet playing. She has performed with different kinds of ensembles in big variety of occasions and also has experience in leading her own bands (Kiki-O, KAMA Kollektiv) so as in being a side man and featuring artist (Karina, Waris, Mikko Sarvanne Hip Company). Harju is feeling very cosy working as a duo with jazz and pop repertoire, but basically anything unique is close to her heart. She has studied singing with Sanni Orasmaa, Tuula Kulhua, Mikko Jokinen, Antti Koivula, Tiia Marjanen, Esther Kuiper and currently with Humphrey Campbell, and attended masterclasses, for example from Sheila Jordan. Harju has gained a major amount of performing experience both as a trumpet player and as a singer. Small and intimate venues for duo performances or big festivals and clubs, it has varied a lot in the past years. Some of the most memorable performances have been in Pori Jazz Festival, Oslo Jazz Festival (Mikko Sarvanne Hip Company), Kaustinen Folk Music Festival (Viskain, Waris), Close Encounters Festival (Kiki-O), Bryssels Jazz Festival (BREXIT Choir), RAI Amsterdam and Dutch tv-program “De Wereld Draait Door” (Amsterdam Funk Orchestra). KAMA Kollektiv is Harju’s latest project and based in Amsterdam. Word KAMA is the outcome of starting letters of the member’s first names in her 2nd quartet (2017). It still remains the name since in Finnish KAMA means “things” or “stuff”, which is also relevant to the music and stories Harju wants to tell; small things from everyday life, nature, love, aspiration etc. Mixing vocal and instrumental, nordic jazz and pop-scented melodies with band members different international backgrounds creates sentimental but exciting outcome. At the moment quartet’s line-up has established with Aurora Hentunen (FI) on piano, Yoad Korach (IL) on drums and Jonathan Nagel (DE) on double bass. KAMA Kollektiv recorded its first album “KOTI” (means HOME in Finnish) in October 2018 in Fattoria Musica – studios in Osnabrück, Germany and it was released in March 2019. ”You are very musical and nobody can ever take that away from you.” – Jan Wessels "To me it sounds like you can "f****** play the trumpet!" - Ambrose Akinmusire “Great sound!” – Alex Sipiagin