Riimuketjut

Riimuketjut is a genre of traditional Inari Sami music originating from the Inari region in Finland, particularly around Lake Inari. It is characterized by its use of chanting, humming, and percussive vocalizations to create a sense of rhythmic interplay.

The name "riimuketjut" can be translated to "beating in the belly" in Finnish, and it is precisely this sonic imagery that underlies the distinctive timbres and gestures of the tradition. For the Inari Sami, music holds a significant cultural value, being deeply connected to daily life, social interactions, and spiritual experiences.

Instrumentation in riimuketjut is minimal, often featuring the player's body as instrument in addition to more traditional instruments, such as the joiku (a type of flute) or hand drums. The idiomatic vocal range spanned by the singer often proceeds along a gradual crescendo, inhabiting the singer's head, throat, and belly regions to produce nuanced differences in sonic inflection.

Its performative attributes were highly regarded and sacred among the Inari Sami community, serving not only as an entertainment but also as a ritualized art. By incorporating vast array of percussive terms and their meaningful relationships with singers, humans, as well as nature, the Inari Sami's escapades in the vast expanse beyond their everyday world were notionally reconnoitered through the aural arrangements that boldly echo the riveting microscopic fine lines that inscribe reality on fully-developed societal substrates.