Auri (band)
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Auri is a Finnish
progressive folk Progressive folk is a style of contemporary folk that adds new layers of musical and lyrical complexity, often incorporating various ethnic influences. History Origins of the term The original meaning of progressive folk came from its links t ...
band composed of vocalist and violinist
Johanna Kurkela Johanna Kurkela (born 25 April 1985) is a Finnish singer. Her first published work was a duet ''Tahdon tanssia kanssasi'' with Tomi Metsäketo in 2004. Kurkela released her first album ''Hetki hiljaa'' in 2005. She got a lot of publicity in the ...
, keyboardist
Tuomas Holopainen Tuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen (born 25 December 1976) is a Finnish musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the primary songwriter, keyboardist, and founding member of symphonic metal band Nightwish. He has stated that his son ...
(her husband), and guitarist, keyboardist and pipe player
Troy Donockley Troy Donockley (born 30 May 1964) is an English composer and multi-instrumentalist most known for his playing of Uilleann pipes. Having performed with many artists as a session player, he is most notable as a member of Finnish symphonic metal ba ...
. Holopainen and Donockley are also members of Finnish band
Nightwish Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee. The band was formed in 1996 by lead songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former lead singer Tarja Turunen. The band soon picked up drummer Jukka Neval ...
. Their self-titled first album, '' Auri'', was released on March 23, 2018. and was recorded at
Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and human rights activist. He came to prominence as the original frontman of the rock band Genesis. He left the band in 1975 and launched a solo career wit ...
's
Real World Studios Real World Studios is a residential recording studio complex founded by Peter Gabriel and situated in the old Box Mill building in the village of Box, Wiltshire, England, near to the city of Bath. It is closely associated with the Real World R ...
. Holopainen described Auri's style as "rabbit hole music and celestial metal" with "influences from
folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...
,
Celtic music Celtic music is a broad grouping of music genres that evolved out of the folk music traditions of the Celts (modern), Celtic people of Northwestern Europe (the modern Celtic nations). It refers to both orally-transmitted traditional music and ...
, nd
soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television show, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of m ...
s". British rock magazine ''Prog'' describes the band as prog folk. The band's name is based on a female character from ''
The Kingkiller Chronicle ''The Kingkiller Chronicle'' is a planned fantasy trilogy by the American writer Patrick Rothfuss. The first two books, '' The Name of the Wind'' and '' The Wise Man's Fear'', were released in 2007 and 2011. The books released in the series have ...
''.


History

Auri was formed by friends Tuomas Holopainen, Troy Donockley and Johanna Kurkela. According to an interview, the music concept for Auri dates back to 2011 when the trio realized they would have to do music together. However, their ongoing responsibilities with other projects prevented them from doing so, until 2017 when they finally had available free time to work on this project. The promotional photoshoot for the band and album inspired and forced them to complete the recording: The band's name is based on a female character from
Patrick Rothfuss Patrick James Rothfuss (born June 6, 1973) is an American author. He is best known for his highly acclaimed series '' The Kingkiller Chronicle'', beginning with Rothfuss' debut novel, '' The Name of the Wind'' (2007), which won several awards, ...
' ''
The Kingkiller Chronicle ''The Kingkiller Chronicle'' is a planned fantasy trilogy by the American writer Patrick Rothfuss. The first two books, '' The Name of the Wind'' and '' The Wise Man's Fear'', were released in 2007 and 2011. The books released in the series have ...
'': On 17 October 2020, it was announced that Auri had completed work on the second album. The second album, titled ''II – Those We Don't Speak Of'' was later released on 3 September 2021. On 26 November 2024, it was announced that Auri is set to go on their first tour in Finland in August 2025.


Band members

Current *
Johanna Kurkela Johanna Kurkela (born 25 April 1985) is a Finnish singer. Her first published work was a duet ''Tahdon tanssia kanssasi'' with Tomi Metsäketo in 2004. Kurkela released her first album ''Hetki hiljaa'' in 2005. She got a lot of publicity in the ...
– lead vocals *
Tuomas Holopainen Tuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen (born 25 December 1976) is a Finnish musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the primary songwriter, keyboardist, and founding member of symphonic metal band Nightwish. He has stated that his son ...
– keyboards *
Troy Donockley Troy Donockley (born 30 May 1964) is an English composer and multi-instrumentalist most known for his playing of Uilleann pipes. Having performed with many artists as a session player, he is most notable as a member of Finnish symphonic metal ba ...
– guitars,
Uilleann pipes The uilleann pipes ( or , ), also known as Union pipes and sometimes called Irish pipes, are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms (literally, "pipes of the ...
,
low whistle The low whistle, or concert whistle, is a variation of the traditional tin whistle/pennywhistle, distinguished by its lower pitch and larger size. It is most closely associated with the performances of British and Irish artists such as Tommy Mak ...
, vocals Session *
Kai Hahto Kai Hahto (born 31 December 1973) is a Finnish musician, best known as the drummer of Wintersun and Nightwish. Career In 2002, Hahto went to New York to study jazz drumming. Hahto was a member of the grindcore band Rotten Sound. In 2004 Haht ...
– drums, percussion


Discography

Studio albums *'' Auri'' (2018) – No. 2
Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
*'' II – Those We Don't Speak Of'' (2021) – No. 2 Finland *''III – Candles & Beginnings'' (2025) Singles *"Night 13" (2018) *"The Space Between" (2018) *"Pearl Diving" (2021) *"The Valley" (2021) *"Shieldmaiden" (2025)


Music videos

*"Night 13" (2017)


References


External links

* {{Nightwish, state=collapsed Finnish musical trios Progressive folk groups Musical groups established in 2017 Nuclear Blast artists 2017 establishments in Finland Female-fronted musical groups