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Music

Finnish folk music can be divided into Nordic dance music and the older tradition of poem singing, poems from which the national epic, the Kalevala, was created.Much of Finland's classical music is influenced by traditional Finnish and Karelian melodies and lyrics, as comprised in the Kalevala. In the historical region of Finnish Karelia, as well as other parts of Eastern Finland, the old poem singing traditions were preserved better than in the western parts of the country, thus Karelian culture is perceived as less influenced by Germanic influence than the Nordic folk dance music that largely replaced the kalevaic tradition. Finnish folk music has undergone a roots revival and has become a part of popular music. The people of northern Finland, Sweden, and Norway, the Sami, are known primarily for highly spiritual songs called joik.

The first Finnish opera was written by the German-born composer Fredrik Pacius in 1852. Pacius also wrote the music to the poem Maamme/Vårt land (Our Country), Finland's national anthem. In the 1890s Finnish nationalism based on the Kalevala spread, and Jean Sibelius became famous for his vocal symphony Kullervo. In 1899 he composed Finlandia, which played an important role in Finland gaining independence. He remains one of Finland's most popular national figures.

Alongside Sibelius, the distinct Finnish style of music was created by Oskar Merikanto, Toivo Kuula, Erkki Melartin, Leevi Madetoja and Uuno Klami. Important modernist composers include Einojuhani Rautavaara, Aulis Sallinen and Magnus Lindberg, among others. Kaija Saariaho was ranked the world's greatest living composer in a 2019 composers' poll. Many Finnish musicians have achieved international success. Among them are the conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen, the opera singer Karita Mattila and the violinist Pekka Kuusisto.

Iskelmä (coined directly from the German word Schlager, meaning "hit") is a traditional Finnish word for a light popular song.Finnish popular music also includes various kinds of dance music; tango, a style of Argentine music, is also popular. The light music in Swedish-speaking areas has more influences from Sweden. At least a couple of Finnish polkas are known worldwide, such as Säkkijärven polkka and " Ievan polkka ".

During the 1970s, progressive rock group Wigwam and rock and roll group Hurriganes gained respect abroad. The Finnish punk scene produced some internationally acknowledged names including Terveet Kädet in the 1980s. Hanoi Rocks was a pioneering glam rock act. Many Finnish metal bands have gained international recognition; Finland has been often called the "Promised Land of Heavy Metal" because there are more than 50 metal Bands for every 100,000 inhabitants – more than any other nation in the world. Modern Finnish popular music includes a number of prominent rock musicians, pop musicians, jazz musicians, hip hop performers, and dance music acts.

Finland has won the Eurovision Song Contest once in 2006 when Lordi won the contest with the song ''Hard Rock Hallelujah''. The Finnish pop artist Käärijä also got second place in the contest in 2023 with his worldwide hit song ''Cha Cha Cha''.