Kajsa Balto's new album "Buot eallá" has been receiving praise from all quarters over the past week. At the intersection of tradition and pop, the Sami artist conveys joik and Northern Sami lyrics that you don't need to understand. Feeling is enough.
/ 15/05/2020 / Kristian DugstadName: Kajsa Balto
Current with: Buot Eallá (Album)
TONO member since: 2017
Who are you, Kajsa Balto?
I am a Sami artist from Oslo! Born and raised here in the south, with a mother from Dokka and a father from Karasjok, so I have both joik and old-fashioned dance in my bag.
Can you tell us a little about your musical background?
I started taking piano lessons when I was five and continued with classical piano in the music department at high school. I also grew up in a family where yoik is a part of everyday life, and when I became a mother myself, the need suddenly arose to start singing in Sami and pass on the yoik to my own children. Otherwise, I must emphasize that having attended the Steiner School has been very important to me, because there I had the opportunity to practice already from the first grade.
Congratulations on your second album. You're welcome. Buot Eallá just a week ago, but the media attention and rave reviews have been immediate. How would you describe the album?
Thank you! The album is a mix of several styles, crossover with roots in traditional joik. The soundscape has become very tight and pop, and something I think works well in the face of the more free joik. I think it's fun to play with that contrast.
You write in Sami and draw clear inspiration from Sami cultural tradition, but at the same time you are able to create something new and unique. How aware are you of the balance – the traditional and the modern?
I'm quite aware of that. I think it's okay to play with traditional expressions as long as you do it with respect and knowledge. That's also who I am as a person, I'm not a traditional yoiker and I don't feel like I fit into a completely traditional format.
When talking about the Sami, it's easy for thoughts to wander north to spectacular nature and vast expanses. But like so many others with a Sami background, you were born and raised in Oslo. Has this influenced your approach to the culture?
Yes, of course. Growing up as a Sami outside the Sami core areas brings with it a number of challenges, especially in terms of language. There aren't many natural arenas where you can use the language on a daily basis here. So then Norwegian becomes very dominant. Even though my father only spoke Sami to me, I eventually started to only respond in Norwegian. I understand all Northern Sami but am unsure of speaking it myself. And then you automatically fall out a bit. So I'm going to make an effort here now, and start speaking more Sami. Everyone has to throw themselves in and try and use the language if it is to be kept alive. Otherwise, I would say that I have been lucky in many ways, to have grown up with living Sami traditions. This is partly because we have a cabin in Karasjok, so I have been able to spend a lot of time up north.
In connection with the album release, you played a beautiful live concert from Riksscenen on the Brakkesyke 2020 page. How was the response?
Thank you, yes, I think the response was very good. I've received many nice messages. We were lucky because on that particular day the restrictions were eased a bit, and we were able to have 40 people in the hall. It felt really good!
Then, inevitably, we come to the corona crisis. How has the situation affected you?
You know, the situation has of course affected me, but I'm lucky and have a work grant at the bottom. So I'm not among those who are hardest hit financially by this.
A pandemic is not necessarily compatible with normal album release activities. Have you had to cancel concerts and reschedule plans?
Yes, the album release turned out very differently than we had planned. The release tour will have to wait and all the festivals we were supposed to play at have been cancelled, but I have faith that things will eventually start to normalize and I hope we will get the opportunity again.
In a special time like this, when we minimize social contact and cultural experiences are digital – Could there be a backdrop where traditional music can help ground us? Remind us of what is important?
Yes, maybe so? I have certainly received feedback from people who feel that the joik touches something in them that they were not entirely aware of. I certainly think that it has been nice to release new music in this special time anyway, and I have myself been very happy to discover new releases during this period. But I am starting to get a little tired of streaming concerts now, and I am looking forward to being able to experience music in real life again and not just through a screen.
What really made you start writing music?
My Sami family background is my driving force. I have a kind of need to do this that I can't quite explain. I just can't seem to stop doing it. A bit self-therapeutic maybe. And now that I have my own children it's even more important, I would like to leave a legacy that makes my children aware of where we come from. A bit pretentious maybe, but it's not a given that I can sing in Sami today.
How do you approach the writing process? Do you sometimes take traditional yoiks or melodies as your starting point?
Yes, that's actually exactly what my starting point was. I started the process of working out material for this album by bringing up personal joiks from my own family. My great-grandmother's joik is one of them, it's a traditional joik that has been handed down between generations. So yes, I often take traditional material as a starting point and transform it a bit, add new parts and the like. I actually think it's an easier creative process than writing something completely from scratch, but for this album, my own songs also came like pearls on a string, so I guess I just had a lot on my mind this time.
Language is a central part of all culture, and helps shape our worldview. Do you find that you think differently about Sami than you do about Norwegian? Does it come more naturally to write about some topics than others?
Yes, it is certainly very nice to sing in Sami, because you can, for example, get descriptions of nature that do not exist in Norwegian. "Buot eallá" means "everything lives" in Northern Sami, and refers to the old belief that everything in nature has a soul. This album is about nature, about treating and managing natural resources with respect, sharing nature's gifts and thinking about future generations. And then language and theme go together like hand in glove.
What other sources of inspiration do you have?
My aunt Haldis Balto has been an important source of inspiration for this album. She has written down many family stories in her own archive, and she has so much knowledge about old traditions. So it was largely the conversations I have had with her that gave me the idea for "buot eallá".
Have you made plans for what you will do as soon as we return to a normal situation?
Both yes and no. Right now I feel a bit in limbo, because there are so many plans that are hanging in the air. So I hope we can get these clarified as soon as the wheels start rolling again. I'm also really looking forward to being able to practice with the band, in a proper practice room, with proper sound!
What is your career highlight so far?
I think I have to say that the release of this album has been a highlight so far.
Can you share your greatest music experience – as a listener?
Maybe Nils Bech's intimate concert inside James Turrell's installation in Ekebergparken a couple of years ago. I still get goosebumps thinking about it.
Finally – Can you give us a tip for a Norwegian artist you listen to a lot these days?
Only one? Okay. Then I'll answer Morgonrode.