Wilho Saari is a fifth-generation Finnish American

Finnish American

Finnish Americans are Americans of Finnish descent, who currently number about 700,000.-History:Some Finns, like the ancestors of John Morton, came to the Swedish colony of New Sweden, that existed in mid-17th century....

 player of the kantele

Kantele

A kantele or kannel is a traditional plucked string instrument of the zither family native to Finland, Estonia, and Karelia. It is related to the Russian gusli, the Latvian kokle and the Lithuanian kanklės. Together these instruments make up the family known as Baltic psalteries...

, the Finnish psaltery

Psaltery

A psaltery is a stringed musical instrument of the harp or the zither family. The psaltery of Ancient Greece dates from at least 2800 BC, when it was a harp-like instrument...

. Kreeta Haapasalo, a well-known kantele player in Finland in the 19th century, was his great-great grandmother. Wilho's father, Wilho Sr., also performed the kantele in public, only in Washington, having brought a kantele with him to America in 1915.

In 2005, Washington's governor, Christine Gregoire

Christine Gregoire

Christine O'Grady "Chris" Gregoire is the 22nd and current Governor of the state of Washington, and a member of the Democratic Party. Gregoire defeated Republican candidate Dino Rossi in 2004, and again in 2008. She is the second female governor of Washington...

, awarded Saari the Governor's Heritage Award for his work popularizing and teaching the kantele. Wilho Saari is a resident of Naselle, Washington

Naselle, Washington

Naselle is a census-designated place in Pacific County, Washington, United States. The population was 419 at the 2010 census. Though very near Columbia River's estuary, the valley's Naselle River flows west into nearby Willapa Bay and then into the Pacific Ocean. Close about the town lie the...

. In 2006, Saari was one of ten recipients of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) award of an NEA National Heritage Fellowship

National Heritage Fellowship

The National Heritage Fellowship is a lifetime honor presented to master folk and traditional artists by the National Endowment for the Arts. Similar to Japan's Living National Treasure award, the Fellowship is the United States' highest honor in the folk and traditional arts...

, the country's highest honor in the folk and traditional arts.

Saari has both taught and performed around the country. In Astoria, Oregon

Astoria, Oregon

Astoria is the county seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Situated near the mouth of the Columbia River, the city was named after the American investor John Jacob Astor. His American Fur Company founded Fort Astoria at the site in 1811...

 and Naselle, Washington

Naselle, Washington

Naselle is a census-designated place in Pacific County, Washington, United States. The population was 419 at the 2010 census. Though very near Columbia River's estuary, the valley's Naselle River flows west into nearby Willapa Bay and then into the Pacific Ocean. Close about the town lie the...

he performed at FinnFest USA '06, an annual national festival, where he participated in the world premiere of a Kantele Mass composed by Jarkko Yli-Annala.

External links

• Washington State Arts Commission - Folk Arts - Master Artist - Wilho Saari
• National Endowment for the Arts - 2006 National Heritage Fellowship - Wilho Saari