Café de Concert to open own café in Oslo

The talented Aksel Kolstad, from Fredrikstad, is the man behind Café de Concert.

Café de Concert will open their first café in Oslo on September 16, 2009. “We believe this is the first café ever to exclusively perform classical music,” says the exited founder, Aksel Kolstad.

In 2003, the talented pianist and composer Aksel Kolstad, together with a colleague, performed live on “Midt i Musikken”, a classical music program on NRK radio P2. During the program they announced their trail concert, which took place at Bygdøy Allé in Oslo. It was a huge success – and Café de Concert was born.

The Concept

Café de Concert is a concept where classical music reaches out to everybody, every day. And a place where musicians and other artists can meet and join forces. The space is tastefully decorated with paintings surrounding a Steinway, generously sponsored by Steinway Norway.

Performed with great young musicians, the concerts mimic the 18th and 19th century classical performances at cafés, with none of the stodginess that accompanies most classical concerts today, and brings the atmosphere of a rock and roll concert to the music of Grieg, Schumann, Handel and more.

The driving force behind Café de Concert is to present classical music to a larger audience. The genre has by no means the same appeal today as pop, rock or jazz, but by creating a more relaxed atmosphere in a more intimate concert format the vision is that classical music can once again become popular music. Café de Concert recruits top, young, international musicians who perform in casual clothing and play classical music in cafes, pubs and restaurants.

New York next

In addition to the concept having regular public concerts and private house-concerts in Norway and abroad, Café de Concert has yearly festivals in the Caribbean and in Aksel’s hometown Fredrikstad. Their 2009 events in the U.S. were sponsored by Innovation Norway.

In 2011, Café de Concert plans to open their next café in the Big Apple.

For further information visit: Cafedeconcert.no