Swedish-Estonian musician Tuulikki Bartosik is an accordionist, composer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist. Her work has grown increasingly adventurous, branching out from its beginnings to explore the possibilities from incorporating vocals, effects and music software with her virtuoso playing. Bartosik’s questing creativity has seen her tour across the globe, discovering inspiration in a quiet forest or the clamour of Tokyo. Her solo albums have received international acclaim; with each one her imagination has spread, taking chances to capture the global musical vision in her head. Her music is vivid and layered and has been compared to the neoclassical works of Eric Satie and the hypnotic minimalism of the 1970s like Philip Glass and Terry Riley. Tuulikkis new electroacoustic album Playscapes was released on Jan 21st 2023 on her own label Efni Records.
By Kamil Bobin
Discovered via Musosoup
Hello Tuulikki Bartosik. What strengths do you have that you believe make you a great musician?
It is hard for me to say if I am a great musician, I think that that is for the audience to decide. I like to try out new things and I am always moving forward and looking for new inspiration.
Who inspired you to make music?
The very first inspiration came from my dad who is still an active musician. But I have quite a few favorites whose creations have inspired me from time to time. From Roxette, Queen, Metallica and Estonian death metal band Forgotten Sunrise to older Swedish traditional music, contemporary Finnish folk music and artists like Hania Rani, Nils Frahm, Four Tet. Probably also a bit of Bach and Rachmaninov, some techno. I have an eclectic background with classical and traditional music degrees and I let it inspire me in all the possible ways while creating.
Your latest release is 'Playscapes'. Can you share with us the background of its creation and did any unusual things happen during its creation?
My life is a patchwork of places, of fleeting connections. Home becomes a series of doors. Yet those doors open on new ideas and cultures. New inspirations. That sense of cities, regions all layered one on the other, is one of the inspirations behind my third solo album Playscapes. I also wanted to create an immersive soundscape to describe my inner journeys in music to take the listener literally to play with me on my playscape. I guess that the whole creating and recording process was quite unusual as it all happened during the pandemic and we had to strech the time according to all kind of regulations and the team members getting covid in turns.
Can you shortly describe each of the tracks that are on the album?
Robertsfors is full of hope and summer vibes, the Baltic Sea and the forest with blackberries, a greeting from North Sweden.
Hibiki is echoing my experiences from my Japan tours.
Reval: Pettäsaamislugu is a true nasty betrayal story sung in the indigenous Võru language from South-Estonia where I have my roots.
Põhjarannik means The Northern coast at it reflects my childhood summers by the Baltic sea.
Tsunagari tells a story of me and Japan, it has a dark undertone but many happy moments in it too.
Norrland describes my reaction to the nature and vibes in Norrland, North of Sweden.
London is my reflection in music about the well known city with thousands of different expressions and inspiration.
Helsinki takes us to one of my favorite places in the world, a calm place filled with innovative vibes and cool design.
Helsinki:Aatos is a thought from the previous tune, rooting us even more in the cool calm environment of one of the Scandinavian capitals.
Sundbyberg is a hommage to the town in the suburbs of Stockholm where I lived for almost 20 years. It also has some undertones of Swedish traditional music which has been a major source of inspiration for me.
Stockholm takes us to the arrogant and multifaceted capital of Sweden, you can hear a field recording in the background with the vibrant pulse on the streets. Urban meets rural.
Livland:Suusilm is a reflection on the Estonian marsh lake, swamps and marshes are my favorite landscapes in Estonia.
How do you stay up-to-date with the latest musical trends?
I listen to a lot of music all the time, check out new playlists frequently and follow different artists and industry professionals in socials.
What makes you different from others?
We are all unique in our own ways, I have never found it important to compare myself to others. Musically I would say my main instrument free-bass accordion which in the music industry seems to be quite an unusual choice for composing and producing music. I also play Estonian zithers and mix everything with electronics, I guess that this combination is quite rare in the industry too but you never know. Everything is already done somewhere and somehow, we are only channeling it all again through our own crative circuit.
What’s an average day like for you?
It depends in which country I am at the moment and if it is my creative or touring period. I am a workaholic, I find it very difficult to just rest and take holidays, so my life is mostly mirroring my work. But in my dream day I find time both for my family, work, recreation and sports. In real life those things usually go in longer periods, it is hard to keep a stable rhythm in life while being a freelancer.
Please discuss how you interact with and respond to fans.
I try to answer my fans in my socials as much as I can, but the thing I love most is to interract with the audience after the live performance, to listen their comments, questions, talk about music and life. I love people and to talk to them in real life. Sometimes you can have the most philosophical discussions after the concert with people you have never met outside the music.
What advice would you have for someone wanting to follow in your footsteps?
Be yourself, everyone else is already taken. Make mistakes, keep learning and developing yourself on all levels. Take risks. Be aware that trust is the most valuable thing which cannot be bought with money or fixed easily when it is broken.
What are your plans for the future?
I am trying to get Playscapes out to the world as much as possible. I am also hearing my music played with a chamber orchestra, so I need to get something done to get that music out of my head. After a little break we are getting back to the studio with my producer to make new music and I will keep on developing my live set and performing live in meaningful places in Europe and Asia. The whole world is my playscape.