Music plays at the Saturday markets every other summer Saturday.

In the summer of 2025, you can enjoy traditional Saturday Markets with programs on the Vepa stage of Hamina Market Square every second summer Saturday, starting on June 14.6. This time, the stage program will include a wide range of music and in July, there will be market dances!

The Saturday Markets program is a family-friendly, non-political, feel-good program that increases the enjoyment of the market square. The programs take place between 11:00 and 12:00 and last 45–60 minutes. This summer, performers have been selected who did not appear in the Saturday Markets program last year. 

Open the program Saturday 14.6. Anna Kokkonen, an award-winning singer-songwriter and producer whose music radiates the forgotten magic of fairy tales and campfires. In February, Kokkonen released his fifth album, “Kadonneet taivaankäpäete”. The music draws from the tradition of Finnish pop music, enriching it with Celtic, rock and folk influences. Kokkonen’s songs have been playing on radio stations for over ten years. In 2021, he was awarded the Kullervo Linna Award as a music composer for his achievements in enriching Finnish pop music, and the artist’s back pocket also includes the song “Tuulen tyttö”, which made it to the finals of the 2021 Syksyn Sävel competition.

Saturday 28.6. Escapism duo, namely Alexi Trumusis and Tea Palonen take over the Vepa stage. The duo offers the market crowd a duo version of the melancholic and comforting music of the band Eskapismi. The band's ranks include faces that have been influential in Hamina for years. Eskapismi released their debut album "Mun vuoro puhuu" last year. The music draws from the crossroads of life and the pain points of human relationships. The end result is profound and emotional. 

July 12.7. Duo Henna & Ilkka, an acoustic mini-band that performs pop/rock covers and their own music. The themes and moods of the songs range from sweet cotton candy to the darkest moments of life.

On July 26th It's worth heading to Hamina Market Square with your dancing shoes on, because Tina Spannäri organizes traditional performances on the Vepa stage stage dances.

As the last Saturday Night program, Elomarkkina Saturday 9.8. On the Vepa stage we reach Join Bus Driver Tööt and Lilja on an interactive musical journey around the world. A cultural veteran from Hamina, Ilkka Muurman is also known to audiences outside Hamina as Uppo-Outo, who struggles from the Hamina duck pond of the Uppo-Outo and Kumiankat orchestra. In recent years, the Bussikuski Töötti character created by Muurman has also become familiar to children and families from Hamina as well as audiences east, west and north of Hamina, which fits well with the tourist theme of Töötti. Now Bussikuski Töötti has been joined on his journey by Lilja Mård, Muurman's granddaughter, who is studying in the StepUp School street education program in the Helsinki metropolitan area. Together, the duo will take the audience on a fast-paced journey around the world, dancing and making music.

For more information: Henni Kiri, cultural producer, Hamina Events and Culture, tel. 0407223687, henni.kiri@hamina.fi

Program in brief

14.6. ANNA KOKKONEN
Anna Kokkonen is an award-winning singer-songwriter and producer whose music radiates the forgotten magic of fairy tales and campfires. She released her fifth album in February Lost celestial bodies.

28.6. ESCAPISM DUO
Escapism duo Alexi Trumusis and Tea Palonen perform songs from Escapism. They feature melancholy, honesty, and comforting tones that stem from mental health challenges, relationship pain points, and emotional crossroads.

12.7. DUO HENNA & ILKKA
Duo Henna & Ilkka is an acoustic mini-band that performs pop/rock covers and their own music. The themes and moods of the songs vary from sweet cotton candy to the darkest moments of life.

26.7. TINA SPÄNNÄRI
Stage dance excitement at the market square – welcome to listen and dance!

9.8. BUS DRIVER TÖÖTTI & LILJA
NOTE! The performance starts at 10:00.

Bus driver Tööt and Lilja's interactive musical journey around the world.

Photo: Bus driver Töötti and Lilja on Saturday Square 9.8.2025. In the photo, Lilja (Lilja Mård) on the left and Bus driver Töötti (Ilkka Muurman) on the right. Photographer Päivi Muurman.