Finland is a nation of extreme differences. Not only in our seasons and nature, but people as well. We are at the crossroads of east and west. Our roots straddle the border: western Finland is influenced by Europe’s ancient agrarian culture and Scandinavian DNA, while the east and north come from an age-old line of hunter-gatherers. Eastern and western Finns resemble each other less than Germans and Brits do. To make something out of that fascinating equation, we got an idea to go skin deep into our heritage and turn DNA samples into music that reflects these extremes.

Symphony of Extremes is a song, which is based on the nucleic acid letters of Finnish people’s DNA sequences: A, C, T and G. Sounds and notes describe the DNA as they were in the sequences.

”Symphony of Extremes is one of the most epic songs that Apocalyptica has ever made. It’s a few minutes journey into the mind of Finland.” – Eicca Toppinen, composer from Apocalyptica

The Symphony of Extremes was a captivating true story that turned exceptional ingredients into an international topic. It united tourism with science and art bringing together a number of professionals at the apex of their fields. A genre-crossing co-operation helped the campaign reach new target groups in totally new forums, such as science and metal music medias.

583 digital media hits (Mostly from the main markets China and Japan)

PR-value about 11,5 million euros

Over 30 million music video views

13,4 million music video views until the end

+38% visitors at Mystay (Visit Finland’s online holiday booking tool)

The Symphony of Exremes is a project where Finnish people's very own data - their DNA sequences - were turned into original music that reflects diversity of Finland as a travel destination.

Finnish people's DNA were gathered from the extreme points of Finland (north, east and west). Genetic data of dozens of people was analyzed by Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland before it was sent to a composer Eicca Toppinen, from metal group Apocalyptica. He based his work on professor Jonathan Middleton's program that can create sounds from the base pairs found in DNA.

”One way to connect with nature is to compose music from nature and DNA is a natural idea to draw from.” – Jonathan Middleton, professor and data composer

Finland is a challenger in global travel markets with a tiny marketing budget. To raise people's awareness of us as a destination, we needed an idea that transcends boundaries and attracts attention. Idea that feel genuinely fresh and evocative.