Joik and Sámi music in Tromsø

What a joik is

A joik, called luohti in North Sámi, is a traditional Sámi form of song. It is usually chanted without instruments, and the words are short or absent. Its tones are mostly pentatonic. The best-known thing about it is its subject: a joik is meant to evoke a person, an animal or a place. In Northern Sámi the verb is transitive, so you do not joik about someone, you joik them. In northern Sámi areas, most joiks are personal and are often made around a person's birth.

Where it comes from

Sámi culture can be traced back at least 2,000 years in northern Scandinavia, and Tromsø lies in that region; its Sámi name is Romsa. Because the culture had no written language, the origins of joik are not documented, and music researchers consider it one of Europe's oldest continuous musical traditions. The Sámi live across Sápmi, which spans northern Norway, Sweden and Finland and the Kola Peninsula in Russia. They are recognised as an Indigenous people in Norway.

Suppressed, then revived

When Christianity spread among the Sámi, joiking was condemned as sinful, linked to the noaidi, the Sámi shamans, and to older rituals. Later assimilation policies, known as Norwegianisation, added to the pressure, and the strongest period of them ran from about 1900 to 1940. The tradition survived anyway. A joik revival in the 1970s brought more than 40 Sámi and joik albums and cassettes, and the Sámi Parliament of Norway was elected for the first time in 1989. Joik is now heard on stage and on record, including at the Sámi Grand Prix.

How it differs from Norwegian folk song

Norwegian folk music has its own forms: the ballads called kvad, short sung verses called stev, and the Hardanger fiddle in the west of the country. Joik is a separate tradition with different roots, so it is worth keeping the two apart. A joik has short lyrics or none, and it is not built like a ballad, because it is a portrait, not a story. A Northern Norwegian folk song or a psalm is closer to what most European listeners expect from a concert.

What the concert says it plays

The concerts in Tromsø Cathedral draw on psalms, folk tunes, traditional music from Northern Norway and Sámi music, performed by professional musicians. The programme varies from concert to concert. That is why this guide says a joik is possible, not certain: if the musicians choose a Sámi piece on your night, you will hear it, and if they do not, you will hear the other kinds of music in the mix. The ticket does not promise any particular piece.

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Listening well

Treat a joik as a person, not a tune. You do not need to understand any language to listen. A church is a quiet room, so let the musicians show you when a piece is finished before you applaud. If a Sámi piece is sung, notice how it differs from the hymns around it: traditionally there is no accompaniment, the pulse is different, and one voice carries the whole sound. Afterwards you can read more about Sámi culture in the sources below.

Who this isn't for

If you came to Tromsø specifically to hear a full joik concert or to meet Sámi performers, a half-hour church concert with a mixed programme is not that. It is a short concert with several kinds of music, of which Sámi music is one. Look for dedicated Sámi cultural events if joik is your main interest, and treat this concert as a pleasant introduction to the region's music.