Piirpauke is a Finnish musical group combining free jazz, flamenco, mbalax, Arabesque, carnatic, romantic, modern, classical, humppa, impressionist, hindustani, salsa, Amharic, Lappjoik, Tibetan, Balkan, Karelian, Finnish, national romantic and rock music influences in their compositions.
The band was founded in 1974 by the keyboardist-saxophonist Sakari Kukko, who is the only original member left in the band today. In addition to a large number of Finnish musicians, several musicians from various countries have also played in Piirpauke.
The name "Piirpauke" comes from an Sakari Kukko's Karelian father and means a noise or a racket.
The band has released 20 studio albums as well as several live and compilation albums. In October 2010 their album Koli peaked number one at the World Music Charts Europe. Piirpauke's best known song in Finland is "Konevitsan kirkonkellot", based on a traditional Karelian melody. It is named after the Konevsky Monastery in the Konevets island of Lake Ladoga. The song was covered by heavy metal band Sentenced in their 2002 album The Cold White Light. In Central Europe the biggest hit is so far "Swedish Reggae".