teija Niku & Juha Kujanpää
Accordionist Teija Niku and pianist Juha Kujanpää have been collaborating since 2008, including in the folk music trio Karuna and the Teija Niku Quartet. Both are known as distinctive composers and instrumentalists drawing from a wide range of influences.
In their duo formation, new compositions truly come to life, with piano and accordion acting as equal partners; each alternately taking on solo and accompanimental roles with some added improvisation. Duo's debut album was released in March 2025. |
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AallotarAallotar is a transtlantic collaboration between violinist Sara Pajunen (Minnesota) and accordionist Teija Niku (Finland). One hundred years ago, their ancestors lived within miles of each other in the western regions of Finland: the ensemble is founded on the common musical ground the women share, but also revels in the cultural differences formed when a lineage is separated by an ocean and the passage of time. Aallotar’s music, released on their March 2014 debut album, has been described as “exquisite, sophisticated chamber folk music.”
www.aallotarmusic.com |
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Currently inactive/previous bands
Teija Niku KvartettiTeija Niku, accordion, vocals
Joakim Berghäll, saxophone, guitar, vocals Juha Kujanpää, piano Tero Tuovinen, double bass |
KarunaEsko Järvelä, nyckelharpa, violin
Juha Kujanpää, piano, harmonium Teija Niku, accordion |
Teija Niku & Grupa BalkanTeija Niku, accordion
Tommi Asplund, violin Tuomas Logrén, guitar, mandolin Ilkka Heinonen, double bass |
BelbowTeija Niku, accordions
Vidar Skrede, hardanger-fiddle, guitar |
Polka ChicksTeija Niku, accordions, vocals
Kukka Lehto, violin, vocals |