In June 1999 Värttinä was awarded the BASF Master Award, given to artists, producers, recorders and studios for records gaining chart success and at the same time displaying high technical and artistic quality. The award has previously been given to Metallica and Shania Twain. After the award Värttinä moved to the studio to record their next album "Ilmatar", released in the beginning of 2000. "Ilmatar" took the experimental and diverse style of "Vihma" even further. "Äijö" became the most popular song of this album, featured by singer Ismo Alanko. During the year, Värttinä toured around Japan and Europe, ending the tour in the Savoy theatre in Helsinki, where a live album of the same name was recorded on 6 December. It was released in the beginning of the next year, simultaneously with the book "Korkeelta ja kovvoo" by Kimmo Nevalainen.