Groupa plays it's own brand of modern Swedish folk music. The original band was founded in 1980, and along with other groups like the now defunct Filarfolket has been a vanguard of the progressive folk music scene in Sweden since the 80's.

The music is based on a great and tender caring for Swedish Folk music, coupled with refined musical skills. With Terje Isungset from Norway as their new percussion player, Groupa continues towards new goals.

In the music of Groupa, you will find a composed picture of the Traditions of Yesterday, the whims of today, and the possibilities of tomorrow.

Giving the music freer reins and new colours, they are exerting themselves in the joy of drawing new musical dimensions with instruments such as mouth harp, overtone flutes, viola d'amore, bells, stones, wood, and melodeon.

Ever since the start, Groupa has been a very popular live band. The band tours Sweden, Scandinavia and Europe relentlessly, and have appeared at the following festivals: Roskilde Festival - Denmark, Folk Festival in Dranouter - Belgium, Nordic Roots Festival, Minneapolis - USA, Folk Alliance, Vancouver - Canada, Pontardawe and Wadebridge - UK, Leipzig Tanzhausfest, Rudolstadt Folk Festival and folkBaltica - Germany, Violin and Village Festival in Maramures - Romania, Festival Porta in Riga - Latvia, Haapavesi Folk Festival - Finland, Falun Folk Music Festival, Stockholm Water festival, Urkult vid Nämforsen, Hultsfredstestivalen, Korrö - Sweden and many others.

Groupa has also been touring India.

In 1987 Groupa received the Volkkunstpreis F V S zu Hamburg, and in 1991 they were awarded a Grammy for their album MÃ¥nskratt. The motivation of the jury read: For pulling the old woolly feeling off folk music with a curious smile!

In 1992, the founder of the band, Mats Eden, was appointed the Composer of the Year at the Musik vid Siljan festival. He was also one of the participant of the Fiddles on Fire tours in -92 and ­94 in the UK, organized by Folkworks.

Groupa's second Grammy was collected in 1996 for their latest CD Imeland. This time in competition with large-selling artists as Rikard Wolff and Stefan Sundström. (groupa.se)

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Two-time Swedish Grammy winner Groupa releases their seventh album, now with singer Sofia Karlsson as a permanent member joining Mats Eden, Jonas Simonsson, Rickard Aström and Terje Isungset to create yet another edition of what many have referred to as Sweden's 'super group of folk music. Fjalar is freer and imbued with great curiosity, exploring the most primitive Swedish sounds with an exciting, forward-looking energy that once again redefines the spirit of Nordic music. (cdroots.com)

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Groupa are today already nearly dinosaurs of the Swedish experimental folk scene, having started back in the early 80s. Yet they have not lost any of their experimental creativity on this their seventh album. On Fjalar they offer an impressive cross over between Swedish traditional music, jazz, free style experimental and world music. The Groupa line-up has not changed since their last album Lavalek. While Mats Eden on fiddles and melodeon and Jonas Simonson on flutes and Härjedalspipa provide the melodic instrumental element, the a bit more chaotic element is provided in particular by the innovative and crazy Norwegian percussionist Terje Isungset with his most unusual set of all sorts of percussion instruments, and Rickard Aström adds his piano and synthesizer. The latest addition to the Groupa line-up is the young singer Sofia Karlsson, with a singing style that crosses traditional Swedish singing and Free Jazz.
The album offers a rather broad range of music, ranging from beautiful quiet music and wild nergetic yet melodic songs and tunes to jazzy trad songs and simply rhythmic noise. There are several genius moments on this CD, such as parts of the first track Det brinner en eld with impressive vocal combinations. As a whole, the album is nothing for people looking for musical harmony, as it sometimes tends to go quite a lot towards noice. This is very free folk music of talented and highly improvising musicians. A special CD in its very own right. (Michael Moll)

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Det började 1980 och sedan dess har det blivit sju skivor. Då var Groupa en del i den nya svenska folkmusiken - banden, grupperna som förändrade och utvecklade samspelsformerna. Nu är det nya gammalt - det finns massor med grupper och stilar som utvecklats ur 1980-talets experimenterande. Men Groupa har under åren ständigt överraskat och tagit nya fräscha grepp på musiken. Fjalar är inget undantag. Skivan innehåller flera oväntade och bra låtar. En sådan är klaviaturspelaren Rickard Aströms 1a augusti som verkar vara inspirerad av Bela Bartoks bearbetningar av musik från Transylvanien. En del i Groupas utveckling är att allt mer av materialet är komponerat av gruppens medlemmar och utgångspunkterna och inspirationen tillåts flöda in från olika håll. Jonas Simonsons Förspel låter som en arabisk- irländsk shakuhachi-improvisation. Terje Isungsets Norwegian Mood blir ett slags nordisk square dance för mungiga. Groupa fortsätter att tillreda nya rätter med ingredienser från folkmusikens allt större skafferi - det är bra det!
(Dan Lundberg i SvD)

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Groupa - Fjalar 2002
(Vaxholm Xource)

 1. Det brinner en eld. 
 2. Polska från Bohuslän. 
 3. Tre heliga mö. 
 4. Kom helige ande (original title: Kom helge and). 
 5. 1a augusti. 
 6. Fjalar. 
 7. Klyftileken. 
 8. Thinner. 
 9. Norwegian mood. 
10. Förspel. 
11. Fyra flickor, Etterspel. 
12. Solen