The Stories & Sounds jam session took place at Café Konstantiina in the bubbling City of Oulu at 18th of September. Café Konstantina was filled with people sharing their stories, through music and art. The event invited people to participate in creating communities of love through everyday encounters as articulated by bell hooks:
“Beloved community is formed not by the eradication of difference but by its affirmation, by each of us claiming the identities and cultural legacies that shape who we are and how we live in the world.” bell hooks
The Stories and Sounds jam Session house band was the electrifying Nova Ensemble Band – an Oulu based folk music ensemble that blends cultural motifs with contemporary sounds to transcend cultural boundaries. The eccentric band outdid themselves with their music during the Stories & Sounds jam session. With their music, Nova Ensemble invited everyone to join in and jam with their own instruments. Participants also shared stories of encounters in the form of poems, artistic work and stories.
Stories & Sounds event was part of the #AinaOllutTäällä series of events also known as #AlwaysBeenHere series of events as part of Oulu2026 European Capital of Culture 2026. These series of events call on all of us to deeply reflect on and recognize our unconscious biases and prejudices. The event was organized by the Mobile Futures research consortium, funded by the Strategic Research Council and in partnership with the University of Oulu.
The fantastic Nova Ensemble started by sharing their story of encountering each other through music. Nova Ensemble played a mix of Iranian traditional music and Finnish folk music, bringing together different musical traditions and instruments.
“Our music is a warm and multicultural combination of traditional melodies, rhythms, and sounds,” Hanieh, Nova Ensemble.
During this Jam session, participants shared stories of those encounters that became meaningful to them while some fused it with art and just good company and music.
Different instruments like Cello, guitar, tar, ukulele among others were played by the participants while others just enjoyed the music and making art that they shared with other participants.
The participants and other Oulu-based artists happily joined the jam session.
Nova Ensemble promotes creativity, connection, and intercultural understanding with their music. Their performance at the Stories & Sounds of both Persian, Finnish and contemporary music created a perfect blend of Iranian traditional instruments and classical music.
The Stories & Sounds jam session was based on the premise that we all carry stories of different kinds of encounters with us in our daily lives. Through such activities participants share their stories of different encounters in spaces of belonging like these.
“I loved this session today, you should plan more of this every month,” Marian, University of Oulu.
Photo Credits: Nelson Otieno