Christian von Alfthan and Eva Helkäma
Christian von Alfthan and Eva Helkäma were a Finnish couple, who on 17 September 1974 met Frank Zappa and his band. Eva was an economist. [1]
Background
When Zappa was dining at the Šašliki restaurant in Helsinki on 17 September 1974, Eva and eight young ladies entered the hall, having a bachelorette party. In line with Finnish wedding traditions, Eva offered an apple to every man in the restaurant. Zappa received two apples. Zappa, Gail Zappa and The Mothers were invited to her wedding within a few days. Zappa deliberately changed their scheduled flight tickets so they could attend the event and the party at the nightclub in Hotel Hesperia, afterwards. At the reception, Zappa and his group performed an acapella version of Approximate for the bride and groom, consisting of nothing but the words: "Eva and apple.". [2] Photos of these events were printed in issue #39 of Apu (27 September 1974). [3]
During these wedding festivities, Zappa also heard Unto Mononen's Satumaa (Finnish Tango) for the first time, which Matti Laipio asked him to perform in concert (later released on You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 2).
On the album You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 2, when Zappa announces the track Approximate, he namedrops Eva Helkäma: "Alright, that's the melody, now, here it is with the mouth, as performed at Eva's wedding."
