The preservation and revitalization of indigenous and traditional singing practices represent a global imperative, as communities worldwide seek to sustain their musical heritage amidst evolving educational and cultural landscapes. In the context of Nordic schools, these concerns are acutely felt, raising important questions about how such heritage can be effectively integrated into contemporary educational settings. This panel brings together diverse perspectives to examine the challenges and opportunities in tracing the history and fostering the continuity of indigenous and traditional singing in Nordic schools. Through a discussion of Christmas music traditions, shifting singing repertoires in Swedish schools, and innovative support for Sámi vocal traditions via online communities, the panel aims to illuminate both the complexities and possibilities inherent in sustaining these vital musical forms within educational frameworks.Christmas Music Traditions in Schools in the Nordic RegionThis co-authored paper investigates the evolving traditions of Christmas music within school settings across the Faroe Islands, Norway, and Finland, situating these practices within the broader framework of theories on tradition and the institutionalization of music heritage. Drawing upon archival research, interviews with educators, and recent curriculum analyses, the study traces how Christmas music - often comprising a blend of local folk melodies, liturgical repertoire, and globally disseminated carols - functions both as a pedagogical tool and as a site of cultural negotiation. By comparing Christmas music traditions in these three countries, the study illuminates broader issues of cultural continuity, adaptation, and identity formation in Nordic school music. The findings contribute to the exploration of indigenous and traditional singing by foregrounding how festive music in educational settings both preserves and transforms local musical heritage in response to shifting social and cultural dynamics.Traditional singing repertoire and changing singing practices in Swedish schoolsNordic compulsory music education has seen a focus on the teaching of popular music in recent years as core curriculum. The so-called “rock band paradigm” in countries such as Sweden, Norway and Finland may leave less class time for the transmission of traditional repertoire in schools. The rapid emergence of large immigrant minorities in these once homogenous populations may also be anticipated to affect what musical cultures find space in the music classroom. In this presentation, results of a 2021 survey of Swedish music teachers (N=287) concerning singing repertoire and singing practices will be presented. In a mixed-mode questionnaire, teachers (N=287) provided a complete list of songs sung during the 2015-16 school year with a chosen grade (grade 4). Teachers were asked to describe the most important criteria they employ when choosing repertoire for teaching, as well as information such as chosen key, sources of repertoire, and other issues surrounding repertoire selection and classroom singing. Questions concerning factors that might potentially influence singing practice and repertoire choice such as teacher age, sex, work experience and professional training, and choice of accompanying instrument were also included. Findings suggest that musical change on the microevolutionary level is occurring in Swedish classroom singing culture. Student participation in choice of repertoire was found to be the most important criteria for teachers in repertoire selection. Singing repertoire was found to have a strongly traditional Swedish character in terms of song origin, language, age, and function. The songs tended to be older Swedish music drawn from popular, children’s, traditional and singer-songwriter music. Music of minority cultures from within Scandinavia and non-Western popular and traditional musics had a very low prevalence. Teacher attitudes towards the place of traditional Swedish repertoire in music education will be discussed in terms of curricular, historical, and social developments in the Swedish context.Supporting indigenous vocal traditions through online communitySámi joiking traditions are considered the oldest living vocal practices in Europe and are recognized as significant world cultural heritage. Due to repressive nationalization processes and prohibitions from majority cultures imposed on Sámi music-making across the Nordic region during the previous century, many Sámi vocal traditions are now at risk of disappearing. Singing Maps is four year (2025-2029) research initiative that aims to broaden participation in joiking traditions through music education. The project seeks to develop online music learning resources and practices collaboratively with tradition bearers and their communities to establish an open online learning community for sharing knowledge. In 2025-2026, field work including interviews, observational studies and video documentation of learning practices was conducted with 12 Sámi tradition bearers from Sweden, Norway, and Finland representing four generations of joikers. In this presentation, preliminary results will be discussed with a focus on tradition bearer’s ways of defining and talking about traditional learning and performance in joiking. Video examples of joiking from different generations will be presented and discussed in terms of tradition and renewal with a focus on engaging young learners in traditional music. The importance of documenting archaic joiking and learning practices for future generations will be spotlighted.