About

Amy Hakanson smiles while playing the nyckelharpa in a sunlit forest
Amy with her three-row chromatic nyckelharpa, built by Hasse Gille
Photo by Sam Sanchez

Amy Hakanson was first introduced to Swedish folk music and the nyckelharpa in 2008, when Väsen first performed at the Wintergrass Bluegrass Festival in Seattle. Her interest in Scandinavian music continued to grow, and in 2014 she purchased her first nyckelharpa. Later that same year, Amy was accepted to the year-long course at the Eric Sahlström Institute in Tobo, Sweden, where she studied traditional Swedish nyckelharpa with Olov Johansson (Väsen), Ditte Andersson, Sonia Sahlström, Mia Marine, and Niklas Roswall.

In addition to the nyckelharpa, Amy plays the fiddle, guitar, banjo, mandolin, cello, and is trained in classical violin. She has a bachelor’s degree in ethnomusicology from Portland State University and grew up immersed in American roots music, playing bluegrass fiddle with her family band. She is interested in exploring ways to incorporate her varied musical background, education, and interests with traditional Scandinavian folk music.

Amy performs regularly with her Nordic fusion band Varelse in addition to playing solo for Scandinavian events, teaching workshops, writing and performing string arrangements for studio recordings, and gigging with local bands in Portland.