In February 2026, Arctic Pulse and Norrbottensmusiken’s Norrbotten World presented Kaipu as a cross-border tour in northern Sweden and Finland. The tour included concerts in Haparanda, Piteå, Tärendö and Oulu, bringing the production to audiences on both sides of the Swedish-Finnish border. The tour is a part of the Interreg Aurora funded project Arctic Music Circles.
Kaipu means longing and loss in Kven, and the production places Kven cultural heritage at the centre. Through reworked Kven songs, hymns, texts, rhymes and melodies, the music connects older cultural material with contemporary expressions such as jazz, electronics, improvisation and soundscapes. The result is an artistic meeting between memory, identity and new musical interpretation.
The production was performed by Nordnorsk Jazzensemble feat. Arve Henriksen and produced by Nordnorsk Jazzsenter. By touring the production in both Norrbotten and Oulu, Arctic Pulse increased the visibility of Kven cultural heritage and showed how minority music can be presented in new cross-border contexts.
The final concert took place in Oulu, where the performance was organised by Oulu Music Festival. The Oulu concert was also part of the Arctic Pulse Producers Network programme and included in the Oulu2026 cultural programme. This connected the public concert tour to a wider professional meeting place for producers, organisers and cultural actors from northern Sweden, Finland and Norway.
The Kaipu tour is a concrete example of how Arctic Pulse works to strengthen cross-border cooperation in the Arctic music field, while also highlighting minority-language music and cultural heritage in contemporary artistic formats.
The tour was carried out within Arctic Pulse together with Nordnorsk Jazzsenter and Norrbottensmusiken’s Norrbotten World, with support from Interreg Aurora, Region Norrbotten and Luleå Municipality.
Learn more about the project Arctic Music Circles
