Heidi Parviainen

{{Infobox musical artist

| name = Heidi Parviainen

| image = Heidi Parviainen performing with Amberian Dawn in 2009.jpg

| caption = Parviainen with Amberian Dawn in 2009

| birth_name =

| alias =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1979|3|8|df=y}}

| birth_place = Espoo, Finland

| death_date =

| instrument = {{hlist|Vocals|keyboards}}

| genre = {{hlist|Symphonic metal|gothic metal|power metal}}

| occupation = {{hlist|Singer|songwriter}}

| years_active = 1997–present

| current_member_of = Dark Sarah

| past_member_of = {{Hlist|Amberian Dawn|Iconofear}}

| website = {{url|https://darksarah.com/}}

}}

Heidi Parviainen (born 8 March 1979) is a Finnish singer. A classically trained lyric soprano, she is the lead vocalist of symphonic metal band Dark Sarah and previously fronted Amberian Dawn.

Career

=Agonia and Iconofear (1995–2006)=

Parviainen was the keyboardist and a vocalist in the band Agonia which was active from 1995.{{Cite web |title=Agonia - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives |url=https://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Agonia/10474 |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=www.metal-archives.com}} The break-up of Agonia led in 1999 to the formation of the band Iconofear, in which Parviainen was again keyboardist/vocalist. Iconofear released three EPs between 2003 and 2006.{{Cite web |title=ICONOFEAR |url=http://www.metalmusicarchives.com/artist/iconofear |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=MetalMusicArchives.com |language=en}}

=Amberian Dawn (2006–2012)=

File:Amberian Dawn 2.jpg on their The Clouds of Northland Thunder tour.]]

Parviainen joined Amberian Dawn in 2006.{{cite web|url=http://www.spirit-of-metal.com/membre_groupe/membre_groupe-nom-Heidi_Parviainen-id-14007-l-en.html|title=Parviainen Heidi (Amberian Dawn)- Musician Profile|access-date=6 February 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131227163916/http://www.spirit-of-metal.com/membre_groupe/membre_groupe-nom-Heidi_Parviainen-id-14007-l-en.html|archive-date=27 December 2013|url-status=live}}

She started to write lyrics which were often influenced by Finnish and Norse mythology, and many of her songs reference the Finnish national poem Kalevala. She undertook three European tours with the band and performed at several European festivals.

On 19 November 2012 the band announced that Parviainen had parted ways with them. The decision was made in early 2012, making Metal Female Voices Fest their last show together with her.{{cite web |url=http://www.amberiandawn.com/parting-ways-with-vocalist-line-up-change1 |title=Amberian Dawn » Parting ways with vocalist, line-up change |accessdate=6 February 2013 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130614133149/http://www.amberiandawn.com/parting-ways-with-vocalist-line-up-change1 |archivedate=14 June 2013 }}

=Dark Sarah (2012–present)=

A few days after her departure from Amberian Dawn, Parviainen announced that she had started a new musical project called "Dark Sarah". She said Dark Sarah "is making one of my dreams come true, a dream that had been sleeping for many years but now has finally awoken."{{cite web |url=http://www.darksarah.com/#/infoPage |title=Dark Sarah Official – About |website=Darksarah.com |accessdate=11 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518071439/https://www.darksarah.com/#/infoPage |archive-date=18 May 2015 |url-status=live }}

Parviainen explained the concept:

{{quote|Dark Sarah's story Behind the Black Veil tells a story about a young woman called Sarah. She is left at the altar by her husband and she almost has a mental breakdown but instead something wakes up inside her and she changes to another person, her meaner half: Dark Sarah.}}

The musical style combines elements of film music, metal music and music theater. The album called Behind the Black Veil, will feature several guest musicians such as Manuela Kraller, Inga Scharf (Van Canto) and Kasperi Heikkinen (U.D.O, Merging Flare). Dark Sarah consists of a band including musicians like: Erkka Korhonen (guitar) (Raskasta Joulua, Northern Kings), Sami-Petri Salonen (guitar), Jukka Koskinen (bass) (Wintersun) and Lauri Kuussalo (drums).

Dark Sarah has released three albums so far after an initial EP. The first album, Behind the Black Veil, was released in 2014. This was followed by The Puzzle (released 2016) and The Golden Moth (released 2018). The Violent Roses EP was released in 2014.

In 2020 the band announced their signing to Napalm Records and a new studio album called "Grim".

In 2023 the band released their fifth album called "Attack Of Orym".

=Other works=

Parviainen has performed with a few other bands in studio, with Eternal Tears of Sorrow on the song "Tears of Autumn Rain" from the album Children of the Dark Waters in 2009, and with Ensiferum on their album Unsung Heroes, providing the choir vocals.