Hello, my name is Suvi Järvelä-Hagström, and I work as Head of Cultural Affairs at the Embassy of Finland. Welcome to today's concert! The Embassy and the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress are proud to be partners in supporting the Finnish and Sámi artists in today's concert. We are delighted to present Finnish and Sámi culture to you through this event. First, a couple of words about Finland. Some of you may know Finland for our education system, technological innovations, stable society or women-led government. One fun fact is that there are more saunas than cars in Finland. 75 % of Finland is covered by forest, and there are almost 190 000 lakes. Finns have a very close relationship to nature, and nature has always inspired Finnish artists. Finland rings with music: in relation to its population, there are more symphony orchestras, music festivals and heavy metal bands than anywhere else in the world. Music kindergarten is very popular and there are music lessons even for babies. Musical traditions are woven into the very fabric of Finland's society. I would also like to tell you about the Sámi people. They constitute the only indigenous people of the European Union. Around 10 000 Sámi live in Finland, speaking three different Sámi languages. The strong nature relation of the Sámi people is expressed in Sámi languages, where you find hundreds of words for example for snow or for reindeer. For many indigenous peoples, nature protection means safeguarding livelihoods. The knowledge of indigenous peoples can help in the adaptation to climate change. It is crucial to support the revival of the indigenous languages and culture, or they will disappear. The diversity of cultures, customs, beliefs and languages is something to be protected and cherished. Promoting equality, including the rights of indigenous peoples, is a priority for Finland, also on international level. Now, I would like to shortly introduce our artists, Kardemimmit and Annamaret: Kardemimmit is a band of four lovely women playing the Finnish national instrument, string instrument kantele. They sing in a style known as "reki." 19th century dancing music, Eastern Finnish archaic improvisation and ancient poem singing are all present in Kardemimmit's music. Ánnámáret lives in northermost Finland. Her concert gains influence from the rich tradition of joik and the Sami homeland's lively culture, nature and everyday life. Joik is a unique form of cultural expression for the Sami people, and it is said joik is one of Europe's oldest song traditions. Ánnámáret's music embodies the seek for one's origins and expresses thoughts about life at the turning point of traditional and modern culture. Ánnámáret's joik and the sounds of the old traditional Finnish bow lyre intertwine with electronic music. You will be able to listen to these concerts again and find all the concerts that have been part of the Homegrown at Home series on the Library of Congress's website www.loc.gov/concerts/folklife or the Library's YouTube Channel. Lots of amazing sound recordings can be found online on the American Folklife Center's website. You are most welcome to visit also the Embassy's website www.finlandabroad.fi/usa and our social media channels. I would like to warmly thank the American Folklife Center for taking these concerts in your concert series and for the cooperation in making these concerts happen. Thank you also for our wonderful artists for bringing your art and music to us. Thank you for joining and enjoy the concerts!