Biography

We Make Sounds This Way is an EP by the award-winning duo formed by vocalist and composer Selma Savolainen & double bassist, vocalist, and composer Helen Svoboda.

Selma Savolainen and Helen Svoboda met at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in 2019, and have since become close friends and collaborators. They have worked as a duo across various iterations, and We Make Sounds This Way forms an exciting arrival point of their evolution as a two-piece.

The songs are short, playful, strange, and beautiful, and were developed at the Helsinki International Artist Programme as part of a three-month residency which Helen was undertaking in the winter of 2023.

The sounds and “words” explored on this EP are often built upon a made-up language, with a focus on syllabic rhythm and articulation. Quite often, the listener may wonder who is who; at certain points, both voices seamlessly blur into a rich and singular sound source (e.g. Low Kuu). At other times, Savolainen and Svoboda each feature their own distinctive voices, also incorporating the double bass as a third group member on the odd occasion.

Tracklist

1. Direction I
2. Kuu
3. Nero
4. Great Courtyard
5. Bay Quay
6. Yötyö
7. Remnants
8. High-Kuu
9. Flock
10. Low-Kuu
11. Direction II