The history of bluegrass in Finland begins in the 60s when musicians became
involved with the folk music boom going round the world. The bands playing
were mostly folk bands that liked to include bluegrass material in their
repertoire. The performances were probably not as "bluegrass" as we would
define it, but it did introduce the five string banjo to Finland. The first
serious attempts to play Scruggs style banjo was by Hannu Karlsson who
picked up banjo playing through the famous Finnish songwriter Pertsa
Reponen who were both enthusiastic Foggy Mountain Breakdown fans.

Around the beginning of the 70s many musicians became more deeply
interested in Anglo-American folk music styles. Mayflower, the first real
Bluegrass band in Finland including such future greats as Kari Reiman
(currently with Varttina), was established through involvement with Tom
Kuchka, an American musician from Pennsylvania, who got interested of his
American music roots after moving to Finland. Their ways separated
Mayflower went on to be the most successful bluegrass performance in
Finnish music history, the peak of their carreer coinciding with the
Country music boom going on at the time.

Not many bluegrass musicians were around in those days. Tom went on to
organize and personally run the weekly Toimela Bluegrass Workshop to
practically train his own Bluegrass musicians. Tom's workshop is probably
the longest continuing Bluegrass workshop in Europe, held regularly every
week for over 30 years and still going strong. Most of the Finnish
Bluegrass pickers have been involved with Tom's workshop at one time or
another and many got their kickstart to Bluegrass through him. Tom Kuchka
still holds the record of the most "strictly bluegrass" albums published in
Finland to date, though this record will soon be challenged by the younger
generation. Tom Kuchka passed away last summer at the age of 61 and is
considered by many as our old Bluegrass pioneer of Finland with his
instantly recognizable high lonesome tenor and fatherly personality.

With the 80s rolling around the younger generation took to the stage
bringing to the scene some of our future world class Bluegrass pickers in
their teens. Janne Viksten and Petri Hakala are probably the best known
Bluegrass pickers outside of Finland among the worlds Bluegrass musicians.
Their legendary Newgrass style band Speed Limit represented the
top-of-the-line of Finnish Bluegrass. Jussi Syren began his Bluegrass
carreer with such bands as High Action Bluegrass band including Matti
Lehtola on the five string banjo. Jussi Syren went on to put together the
Lake Country Boys around 1987, one of the most active bands touring outside
of Finland.

Matti Lehtola together with American banjo player Chip Covington were
instrumental in establishing the first Bluegrass festival in Finland in
1988. The Ruotsinpyhtaa Bluegrass Festival got all the Bluegrass pickers
together which led to the establishing of the Finnish Bluegrass Music
Association in 1993. This was followed up with many more active Bluegrass
bands including The Berghall Mountain Boys, Picks & Hammers, A Bluegrass
Company, Jussi Syren & the Groundbreakers, Intergalactic Bluegrass
Messengers, Janne Viksten & Blue Harbor, Ed Brauchli Band and still more to come...