Barbara Helsingius
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Personal information | |
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Birth name | Barbara Christina Elisabeth Helsingius |
Born | 27 September 1937 Helsinki, Finland |
Died | 9 March 2017[1] Espoo, Finland[2] | (aged 79)
Spouse(s) | Henry William Koski; 2 daughters |
Sport | |
Sport | Fencing |
Barbara Christina Elisabeth Helsingius-Koski (née Helsingius; 27 September 1937 – 9 March 2017) was a Swedish-speaking Finnish singer, poet, and Olympic fencer.[3]
Career[]
She participated at the 1960 Summer Olympics.[4] Trained as a gym teacher, she took her masters in pedagogy at Stanford University (1963). Interested in American art and folk music, she began to record, and her first release, Barbara (1966), was a collection of American folk songs, translated to Finnish.[3]
She became well known internationally, and was a member of in Norway, of Visans Vänner in Helsinki, and Yrkestrubadurernas Förening in Sweden, part of the Svenska Visakademien (1999; its only Finn),[5] and the joint Nordic cultural organisation NordVisa.[citation needed]
From 1968–75, she lived in Oslo with her husband, Henry William “Hank” Koski, a diplomat at the U.S. embassy. She was the mother of two daughters. Her family lives in Espoo.[3]
Death[]
Helsingius died following a long illness on 9 March 2017 in Espoo, Finland at the age of 79.[6]
Prizes[]
- Hambestipendiet, Sweden (1989)
- Norsk-finsk kulturpris (1993)
- Nils Ferlin-prisen, (Sweden; 1994)
- Trubadurprisen (1994)
- NordVisa-statuetten ("Liv"; 1995)
- Pro Cultura, Espoo, Finland (1995)
Books[]
- Vill du visor min vän?
- Kanske en visa" (Schildts)
- dikt av Eino Leino, collection
- Songs Finland Sings, Warner/Chappel Music Finland (2000)
Discography[]
- Barbara (1966; American folk songs in Finnish)
- Det var en gång (1977; own songs)
- Olipa kerran (1978; Finnish version of the above)
- Speiling (1981; Finnish songs in Norwegian)
- Barbaras blandade (1981; own songs)
- Kahlaajatyttö (1982; musical settings of the Finnish poets Aale Tynni and Aila Meriluoto)
- Fra Barbara med kjærlighet (1982; Finnish songs in Norwegian)
- Reflection. Songs from Finland (1984; Finnish songs in English)
- Drøm og bekjennelse (1986; her own and Finnish songs in Norwegian)
- Spegling (1986; Finnish-Swedish songs)
- Rakkaudella (1986; Finnish version of above)
- Tuulen niityillä (1992; Nordic songs in Finnish)
- Sånt är vårt liv (1996; own and Finnish songs in Swedish)
- Songs Finland Sings (2002; double CD of Finnish poems and songs, classics and songs which she translated to English. Contains 30 artists, including the Serena choir)
References[]
- ^ Gustafsson, Lars: Barbara Helsingius har dött – vi minns den mörka altrösten, yle.fi, 9 March 2017. (in Swedish)
- ^ Death notice, in Helsingin Sanomat, 8 April 2017, p. C 20.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c Helsingius, Barbara. Biografiskt lexikon för Finland. Accessed 10 March 2017. (in Swedish)
- ^ Barbara Helsingius at sports-reference.com. Accessed 10 March 2017.
- ^ Helsingius, Barbara in Uppslagsverket Finland. Accessed 25 March 2017. (in Swedish)
- ^ "Laulaja Barbara Helsingius on kuollut" (in Finnish). Ilta-Sanomat. 9 March 2017. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
- 1937 births
- 2017 deaths
- Sportspeople from Helsinki
- Swedish-speaking Finns
- Fencers at the 1960 Summer Olympics
- Finnish female singers
- Finnish singer-songwriters
- Finnish female fencers
- Olympic fencers of Finland