2015 Sara Pajunen

Finnish-American Violinist

Finlandia Foundation National named violinist and composer Sara Pajunen of Minnesota as 2015 Performer of the Year (POY).

The classically-trained musician draws on the music of her heritage in what she calls “progressive yet reverent ways.” Sara is a native of Minnesota’s Iron Range, where she experienced Finnish folk music as a child. She earned a bachelor’s degree in classical violin performance from the University of Minnesota and a Solo Studies degree from Stadia in Helsinki, Finland.

With a grant from FFN she studied folk music in Finland and became interested in melding the past of her Finnish ancestors with the present. In 2014 Pajunen created a multimedia and interactive piece called Laatikko/Box, which combines materials drawn from Finnish-American archives and music, voices and electronics.

FinnFest 2015 Aallotar.P1140361 — Sara Pajunen and Teija Niku are Aallotar

Her recordings include an album of Finnish tangos and collaborations with the duos Aallotar and Kaivama, and she has studied, toured and recorded with Finland’s top folk musicians. Pajunen has been called “an amazingly versatile musician who now counts among the most ambitious and notable practitioners of Finnish folk music outside of Finland.”

Find more about the artist at sarapajunen.com