Arja Saijonmaa

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Arja Saijonmaa (2019)

Arja Enni Helena Saijonmaa (born December 1, 1944 in Mikkeli , Finland ) is a Finnish singer .

Life

Arja Saijonmaa is the daughter of a dentist and a pianist. After graduating from school in 1964, she studied at Stephens College in Columbia , Missouri, thanks to a Fulbright scholarship . She earned an Associate in Arts and returned to Finland, where she attended the University of Helsinki a master acquired in theater, literature and musicology. She studied piano at the Sibelius Academy . She studied film at Konsthögskolan in Helsinki and took part in student theater from 1966, starring in small roles in Finnish films such as The Bride of Lapua and The Time of the Roses .

From 1970 she became friends with the Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis , whose songs she interpreted. At the funeral of the murdered Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme in March 1986 she performed the Theodorakis song O Kaimos at the request of Lisbet Beck-Friis, Palme's widow .

Saijonmaa tried several times to take part in the Eurovision Song Contest . With her song Talvilintu she tried in 1971 to take part in the Finnish Melodifestivalen de, preliminary decision for the Eurovision Song Contest 1971 . She made a second attempt in 1987 with the song Högt över havet , written and composed by Lasse Holm , this time at the Swedish Melodifestivalen . With only one point difference, she finally lost to Lotta Engberg and her song Fyra Bugg & en Coca Cola in second place , which in turn came twelfth in the 1987 Eurovision Song Contest in Brussels . When she took part in the Melodifestivalen in 2005, she took the last place in her semi-finals with her song Vad du än trodde så trodde du fel . At the Melodifestivalen 2019 , too, with her contribution Mina fyra årstider " (German: My four seasons ), she did not manage to qualify for another round of the competition as the last place.

Politically, Saijonmaa worked for the moderately liberal Finnish Swedish People's Party . She was appointed ambassador to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees . A position that Richard Burton , Sophia Loren and Udo Jürgens previously held.

Saijonmaa lives in Paris and Stockholm .

Discography (selection)

Arja Saijonmaa (2014)
Arja Saijonmaa (2011)

Albums (Finnish)

year title Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements
(Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) 		Remarks
FI FI
2000 Sydänten silta FI35 (1 week)
FI

More albums

  • Laula Kanssani toveri (1972)
  • Arja Saijonmaa & Mikis Theodorakis (1972)
  • Koko yön minun poikani valvoi (1973)
  • Huomenta sydämeni (1975)
  • Jokainen arkiaamu (1979)
  • Miten voin kyllin kiittää (1979)
  • Ruotsiin ja takaisin (1981, FI:goldgold)
  • Ystävän laulu (1983)
  • Valitut laulut (1986, FI:goldgold)
  • Arja Saijonmaa & George de Godzinsky Finlandia-talossa (1986)
  • Yhteinen Taivas Ja Maa (1989)
  • Paijaa mua (1993)
  • La Cumparsita (1994)
  • Rakkaus on rohkeutta (2006)

Albums (Swedish)

year title Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements
(Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) 		Remarks
SE SE
1977 Det är tid att sjunga singers SE11 (19 weeks)
SE
1978 I Stockholms Konserthus 9.1.1978 SE14 (4 weeks)
SE
1979 Jag vill tacka livet SE3 (8 weeks)
SE
1981 Sånger från asfalt och ängar SE27 (3 weeks)
SE
1987 Högt över havet SE13 (6 weeks)
SE
2002 100% Arja Saijonmaa SE39 (2 weeks)
SE

More albums

  • Leksaker and Parfym (1982)
  • Arja sjunger Zarah (1988)
  • Samma Heaven, Samma Sol (1989)
  • La Cumparsita (1994)
  • En bro av gemenskap (1999)
  • Dig har jag kär ... (2014)

Singles (Swedish)

year Title
album 		Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements
(Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) 		Remarks
SE SE
1987 Högt över havet
Högt över havet 		SE14 (2 weeks)
SE
2005 Vad du än trodde så trodde du fel
 SE53 (1 week)
SE

Filmography (selection)

  • 1967: The bride of Lapua (Lapualaismorsian)
  • 1969: The time of the roses (Ruusujen aika)
  • 1985: Under the Northern Lights (Havlandet)

Web links

Commons : Arja Saijonmaa  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Favoriteerna vidare till finalen i Melodifestivalen - publiken jublade. Retrieved February 4, 2019 (Swedish).
  2. ↑ a b c Chart sources: FI SE
  3. ↑ Music Sales Awards: FI
personal data
SURNAME Saijonmaa, Arja
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Saijonmaa, Arja Enni Helena (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Finnish singer
DATE OF BIRTH December 1, 1944
PLACE OF BIRTH Mikkeli , Finland