Friday, March 23, 2012

Finnish Music Talent Showcase Tomorrow in Berkeley (3/24)

Wake up Bay Area’s Finnish community and come and celebrate a cavalcade oftop local Finnish musical talent at Berkeley’s historic Kaleva Hall. There’s something for the whole family – from a kantele group andchildren’s sing-along to classical and Irwin Goodman, from Sibelius andVärttinä to humppas and contemporary dance music.

This event will help fund the new stage curtains and all the musicians are donating theirservices to preserve our unique Finnish Hall, built in 1932 by Finnish immigrants. Come celebrate with good music, food and refreshments – andcontribute to the fundraiser.

The concert begins with traditional instrumental and vocal music and a children’s sing-along. After the dinner with a Finnish DJ the evening concert will present the whole spectrum of Finnish music.

Don’t miss this chance to see all thesewonderful groups in one place. See the attached poster for more detailedinfo.An alternate to driving to Berkeley: the Hall is only a 10 min. walk awayfrom the North Berkeley BART Station.

If you cannot come to the concert, please, consider sending a donation to the Curtain Fund, UFKB&S #21, 1970 Chestnut St., Berkeley, CA, 94702.

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Finnish Language Weekend at FAHA THIS WEEKEND!!!

24th-25th SAT-SUN starting at 9.00am Finnish Language Weekend at FAHA, 197 W Verano Ave, Sonoma .

Come and experience a 'finntastic' way to learn Finnish language and enjoy some Finnish culture. Weekend includes language instruction, cooking, music, folk dancing, movies and sauna.

The cost includes four meals, two coffee times, instruction, games, sauna experience etc.

Member $35.00, non-members $45.00. Guest rooms per night for members $60.00 and non-members $85.00 on first come first served basis.

Please sign up in advance by calling FAHA (707) 935-0200 or pick up the registration form at www.fahausa.org

Monday, March 19, 2012

Finnish Film Night This Weds 3/21: One Foot Under – "Toinen Jalkahaudasta" - 6 p.m. at UC Berkeley. FREE!

Moi kaikki!

Finnish film night on Wednesday!

This time we’ll be watching a film called One Foot Under – Toinen jalkahaudasta. It’s a comedy about a terminally ill gardener who meets thewoman of his dreams – too late? Read the synopsis below.The time and the location of the film night are the same as previously, 6pm at Dwinelle B-4. The movie is shown in Finnish with English subtitles.

Everyone is welcome so feel free to bring friends!

When: March 21, 6 pm

Where: UC Berkeley campus, Dwinelle B-4(The doors on the Campanile side are unlocked. As you enter from theCampanile side, turn left and then take the stairs on the left to thebottom floor.)

-JenniFinnish TA

Synopsis: One Foot Under – Toinen jalka haudasta (2009)Visa (Tobias Zilliacus) is a 35-year old team leader at the Helsinki citygardening department suffering from a terminal neurological disease andonly has a few months to live. He’s also in the middle of a relationshipcrisis. His last wish is to build the garden of his dreams. He meets Hanna (Helena Vierikko) who is a reporter hoping to write a story on terminallyill patients and their wishes. As Visa gets to know Hanna, he is certainhe has met the woman of his life - too late. But in the end, fate has afew surprises up its sleeve.

Link to trailer (in Finnish):http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCzAvrmeYUE

Thursday, March 15, 2012

CONCERT: KALEVA HALL CURTAIN CALL – March 24, 4-9 p.m. - KALEVA HALL CURTAIN CALL – Big benefit Concert for new stage curtains!

Big benefit Concert for new stage curtains!
New: No reservations required!

KALEVA HALL CURTAIN CALL

March 24, From 4-9 p.m.

1970 Chestnut Street in Berkeley


Wake up Bay Area’s Finnish community and come and celebrate a cavalcade of top local Finnish musical talent at Berkeley’s historic Kaleva Hall. There’s something for the whole family – from a kantele group and children’s sing-along to classical and Irwin Goodman, from Sibelius and Värttinä to humppas and contemporary dance music. This event will help fund the new stage curtains and all the musicians are donating their services to preserve our unique Finnish Hall, built in 1932 by Finnish immigrants. Come celebrate with good music, food and refreshments – and contribute to the fundraiser. The concert begins with traditional instrumental and vocal music and a children’s sing-along. After the dinner with a Finnish DJ the evening concert will present the whole spectrum of Finnish music. Don’t miss this chance to see all these wonderful groups in one place. See the attached poster for more detailed info.

An alternate to driving to Berkeley: the Hall is only a 10 min. walk away from the North Berkeley BART Station.

If you cannot come to the concert, please, consider sending a donation to the Curtain Fund, UFKB&S #21, 1970 Chestnut St., Berkeley, CA, 94702.

Thank you,
Heikki Koskinen / Event Musical Coordinator

Friday, March 2, 2012

FILM: "Flamingos" San Francisco Premiere, March 7 at 9 p.m. at the Lost Church (65 Capp Street (near Mission & 16th St.) COST=$10

Hello there - Please join me for the San Francisco premiere of

"FLAMINGOS": an outlaw romance noir

flamtitle22.jpg

WEDNESDAY MARCH 7th


Doors open at 7:30pm. Movie starts at 8pm.

Prior to the screening, SYLVI ALLI will perform a 15-minute set of songs from the movie.
I will be on hand afterward for a post-screening Q & A.

Where ? THE LOST CHURCH
http://thelostchurch.com/

65 Capp Street (near Mission & 16th St.) in S.F.
Admission: $10. (to help offset post-production expenses)


WATCH A BRIEF EXCERPT (not a trailer)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zbPnrkm9NQ

SYNOPSIS (no spoilers here)
Twin sisters, Beatrice and Zoe, are in love with Ray, a hypnotist-bank robber driven by visions of the end the world. Though Beatrice and Ray are married, Ray runs off with free-spirited Zoe and hides out in a motel after a bank heist. Meanwhile, Beatrice files for divorce as two enigmatic entities from the Bardo interzones take interest in their fates in Antero Alli's heady cocktail chaser of crime, metaphysics, and amour fou.

starring
MADELINE H.D. BROWN as "Beatrice" & "Zoe"
and JOE ESTLACK as "Ray"
also featuring...
ROBERT HAMM as the divorce attorney
ILYA PARIZHSKY as the masculine entity
ALASKA YAMADA as the feminine entity

The FLAMINGOS movie site - http://www.verticalpool.com/flamingos.html

FLAMINGOS reviewed - http://www.badlit.com/?p=21502

flamtitle22.jpg
92K View Share Download
YouTube - Videos from this email

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Harry Siitonen's "Sports So Far" [March 2012]

FAR SPORTS For MARCH ISSUE 2112:
The Finnish Sports Editors’ Association awarded World Women’s Biathlon champion Kaisa Mäkäräinen its annual award of Top Finnish Athlete of the Year for 2011 in January. She received 3,205 votes, including 151 first place votes. Cross-country skier Matti Heikkinen was second with 2,453 (121) and the Finnish Men’s National Hockey team won 3rd, 1,578 (48). It was the third year in a row that a woman won the top athlete’s award. For 2010 it was Orienteer Minna Kauppi and in 2009 cross-country skier Aino-Kaisa Saarinen
Finnish sports fans were shocked in January to hear of the death of Enduro world champ Mika Ahola, 37, who died in a Barcelona hospital from surgery following a fall in December. On New Year’s Eve he had announced his retirement from this sport. Riding for the Italian team H.M. Moto, he had won five consecutive world championships in this demanding discipline. Enduro is an off-road motorcycle sport which involves many dilemmas and obstacles. It’s also a time-keeping sport in which the rider needs to arrive at certain interval points at specific time and is penalized points for early or late arrivals.
On the good news side, veteran Finnish tennis star Jarkko Niemiein, 31, won only his second career ATP singles title when he whipped France’s Julien Benneteau (ATP 49) , 6-2, 7-5. in the final of the Sydeny Open Jan. 15. At the time Nieminen held ATP rank 77, and had to play two qualifying rounds before being even allowed to play in the Open. Sydney was a field day for wild cards as all top-ranked seeds were eliminated in the earlier rounds,. Nieminen’s main scalp was highly –ranked Czech Radek Stepanek in the second round, 7-6 (7-5), 6-7, 6-1, who had defeated the Finn at Brisbane the week before. Nieminen’s previous ATP singles win was in Auckland, NZ in 2006. Jarkko and his doubles partner Matthew Elden of Australia also clawed their way to the doubles final at Sydney, before being deposed by the best doubles team in the world, USA’s Bryan twins, Bob and Mike. All this left Nieminen so bushed he was unable to get past the first round in the Australian Open Grand Slam a couple On the boxing front, Juho Haapoja maintained his European Union light-heavyweight crown by decisioning Ireland’s Ian Toms before 2500 fans at Seinäjoki on Jan. 20, The “Härmän Häjy’s´ points: 116-112, 2115-113, 115-113. Finnish women’s upper featherweight Eva Wahlström took Zsofia Bede of Hungary by decision to mark her seventh pro-win with no defeats.
The Finnish boys’ hockey wteam on in the Youth World Olympics for ages 16 and under, by edging Russia, 2-1, at Innsbruck, Austria on Jan. 22. Another Finnish gold went to Niki Lahikoinen in the boys’ ski-cross, a silver to Ilkka Herola in the combined (jump & xc), Lauri Kivari in the free-style half-pipe and to Eveliina Viljanen in girls’ figure skating.
While we’re on figure skating, Finnish national champion Kiira Korpi is burnishing a silver from the European Women’s Championships that concluded in Sheffield, England on Jan. 28. She finished second to Carolina Kostner of Italy who had 183.55 points to Kiira’s 166.94. Georgia’s Elena Gedevanishvili was 3rd with 165.83. In the short program Kiira was close to Carolina, 63,2 to 61,80. In the short program Korpi’s music was Ladt Gaga’s “You and I”. In the free skate it was George Gershwin’s “I Gor Rhythm”
Tanja Poutiainen was second in the World Cup slalom at Kranjska Gora, 0.85 seconds begind Michaela Kirchgasser of Austria on Jan. 22. In the X-Games At Aspen, Colo., snowboarder Enni Rajajärvi was second behind USA’s Jenny Anderson in the slope-style 82.61-95.33., an event Enni won last year. Peetu Piiroinen got the bronze in the men’s slope-style snowboard. In a World Cup cross-country ski sprint at Moscow on Feb. 2, the winner was Cup leader Justyna Kowalczyk of Poland, with Finns Aino-Kaisa Saarinen and Krista Lähteenmäki in fourth and fifth . On Feb. 5 in Innsbruck, snowboartder Peetu Piiroinen dominatedin a six-star Big Air jump, while Markus Malin and Janne Korpi were second and third in Calgary to a snowboard win by Ryo Anono of Japan.
Back in Finland in the national winter indoor multi-event track championships at Bonia Hall at Mustajärvi. long–time pentathlon champion Niina Kelo was upset by Miia Kurppa, eight years her junior, on Feb. 5. Kurppa opened her charge with an 8.71-sec personal best in the 60m hurdles and another PB 170 cms in the high jump. Niina came back with a powerful 14.61 thrust in the shotput, but Miia took the long jump with 6 meters and the 800m run in a new course record of 2:26.04. Thus, in a close call in points it was 4044 for Miia, 4032 for Niina. Tero Ojala took the men’s heptathlon with 5360 points..