Experience The Førde Folk Music Festival

Gjermund Larsen is a rare folk musician. A young fiddler of brilliant renown on the folk musical circuit. At Førde, Larsen is set to perform in a variety of settings, making him one of the festival’s busiest performers. Photo: Mic.no

For the last two decades, the Førde Folk Music Festival has maintained a position as Scandinavia’s leading folk/ethnic/world/crossover festival. This week sees the festival’s loyal and steadily growing audience and a considerable international delegation congregating at the western-Norwegian festival for four days of sunshine and a seemingly endless supply of vibrant music.

The festival is now in its 20th consecutive year, and holds a position as Scandinavia’s key folk/ethnic/world/crossover festivals. Over these twenty years, 4500 artists representing 120 countries have performed at the festival stages of Førde. The artists represent a unique musical diversity; a diversity that in turn represents a vital component of the world’s combined cultural capital. It is the festival’s governing principle to offer its audience the opportunity to experience this fantastic cultural wealth and to give voices from all countries and cultures a stage and a chance to be heard. The Førde Festival is to create a setting ripe with new experiences, new knowledge and deep, profound insight.

The Norwegian folk music scene is represented by a selection of strong ensembles and performers that range from solo artists to large bands of fiddlers. Traditional Hardanger fiddle music is contrasted by more eclectic and experimental sounds resulting in a highly representative and inspiring encounter with Norwegian folk music.

MIC Norway has selected some of this year’s most exciting performers and projects, interviewed some of them and profiled others.

Click here for an overview of the most interesting events at Førde July 2 -5, 2009

Source: Mic.no