Music of Norway
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| Nordic music |
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| Denmark |
| Faroe Islands |
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| Norway |
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Folk music from Norway is usually in minor or modal, making a sober and haunting sound, though major key dance music forms also exist. In the last half of the 20th century, Norway, like many other countries in the world, underwent a roots revival that saw indigenous music being revived. Prior to the 1700s, there is scant record of what kind of music was played in Norway. In 1380, Norway had come under Danish rule, and thus had no royal house or nobility of its own; as a result, for 450 years, Norway did not participate in the musical development which occurred in royal circles throughout the rest of Europe. Religious and folk music probably remained popular throughout this era, though again scant records exist to document their nature.
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Classical music
The first classical composers from Norway are documented from the beginning of the 18th century, when they composed dance and chamber music, including cantatas. In 1814, Sweden entered into a union with Norway, and the Swedish royal family spent time in Norway's capital, Christiania (Oslo). At their royal court, music flourished.
The violinist Ole Bull (1810–1880) was the first major Norwegian musician. He became world-famous starting in about 1834, and was known as the Nordic Paganini. Foreign musicians began settling in Norway in large numbers in the 1840s, bringing with them musical knowledge from the rest of Europe. Following the French Revolution of 1848, Norway saw the development of a strong national consciouscness, as well as economic growth which occurred the development of music. In comparison to most other countries of this period, female Norwegian musicians were widely accepted, and were even published and given stipends by the state.
With Norwegian nationalism burgeoning, the musical scene throughout the country entered the Golden Age of Norwegian Music, led by Halfdan Kjerulf and organist and collector Ludvig Mathias Lindeman. The Golden Age's most prominent composers were Johan Svendsen and Edvard Grieg. These composers, inspired by Lindeman's collections and Ole Bull's Hardanger fiddling, incorporated Norwegian folk elements into their compositions.
At the end of the 19th century, folk song collecting continued unabated, and composers like Christian Sinding and Johan Halvorsen were well-known. Following the dissolution of the union with Sweden in 1905, Norwegian nationalism continued to grow in popularity and innovation, led especially by David Monrad Johansen, Geirr Tveitt, Bjarne Brustad, Ludvig Irgens Jensen, Harald Sæverud, Klaus Egge and Eivind Groven. These composers focused on using folk music in their compositions, a trend which continued well into World War 2, through a process of internationalization began in the 1930s. In between the wars, only a few composers, like Pauline Hall and Fartein Valen, were significant influenced by foreign styles.
After World War 2, Norwegian music began moving in a new direction, away from the Nordic and Germanic ideals of the past, and towards a more international, especially American, British and French, style. New composers of this period included Johan Kvandal, Knut Nystedt, Edvard Hagerup Bull and Egil Hovland. Of especial importance was French neo-classicism, Paul Hindemith and Béla Bartók. During this period, serial music appeared in Norway, led by Finn Mortensen. Later, avant garde composers like Arne Nordheim took advantage of technological developments, using a variety of electronic effects and bizarre instrumentation.
A lot of Norwegian music fans did not take to the new direction these avant-garde composers were moving in. Some, like Kåre Kolberg, reacted by composing simple music, while others, such as Alfred Janson and Ragnar Søderlind, revived romanticism. Some music from this era attempted to address social and political concerns, such as Janson's dedication of a violin concerto to Chilean president Salvador Allende.
By the end of the 1970s, Norwegian music had become very diverse, incorporating elements from throughout the country's documented musical history, as well as modern jazz, pop and rock. Composers of the last part of the 20th century include Olav Anton Thommessen, Magne Hegdal, Åse Hedstrøm, Asbjørn Schaatun, Tor Halmrast, Glenn Erik Haugland, Henrik Asheim, Cecille Ore and Ketil Hvoslef. Popular and classical attention to folk music has also continued through the work of composers like Lasse Thoresen.
Folk music
Traditional Norwegian songs (kved), ballads and short, often improvised songs (stev) are three of the biggest types of folk music. Work songs, hymns, tralling vocals and old printed ballad stories, skillingsviser, have also been popular. The Hardanger fiddle (hardingfele) is perhaps the most distinctive instrument in Norwegian folk music, though other fiddles like the standard violin and Setesdals-fele are also popular. The hardingfele was part of kappleik musical contests from the late 19th century. Perhaps the most popular and controversial of modern hardingfele artists is Annbjørg Lien, who released her first album, Annbjørg in 1989. The album featured Helge Førde and Frode Fjellheim and was both praised for its innovative fusion work and expressive style, and criticized for its watering-down of traditional sounds and a lack of regional tradition.
Traditional dances include: slåttar, bygdedans, halling, pols, springleik, rull, gangar, springar and bruremarsj. In the 19th century, musicians like Myllarguten began introducing more expressive ways of playing. Later in the century, new dances were imported from Europe, including the fandango, polka and mazurka. These were known as gammeldans.
Other Norwegian folk instruments include:
- willow flute
- tungehorn and Meråker (clarinets)
- bukkehorn (goat horn)
- lur (small trumpet)
- langeleik (box zither)
- Norwegian harp
Popular music
Norwegian popular music has generally been appearing on the international scene after year 2000, initially a breakthrough by Norwegian jazz and black metal artists, then followed by electronica and pop artists. The Rune Grammofon record label has gained some renown for releasing experimental Norwegian music.
Modern Norwegian pop bands include Turbonegro, Kings of Convenience, Jaga Jazzist, Lene Marlin, Madrugada and Röyksopp. Some of the most long-standing pop musicians are Sissel and a-ha. Aside from stars Röyksopp, Norway has produced electronic performers like Frost, Bertine Zetlitz, Ralph Myerz and the Jack Herren Band, Xploding Plastix, Bjørn Torske, Palace of Pleasure, UGress, Sternklang, Teebee and Polar. Norway's hip hop scene includes Warlocks, Tommy Tee, Klovner i Kamp, Diaz and Tungtvann. The country has long been a major player in the Scandinavian death metal and other heavy metal scenes, alongside Sweden and Finland, and has produced such bands as Burzum, Immortal, Emperor, Red Harvest (band), Kovenant and Satyricon (band). Norway has also produced country musicians like Heidi Hauge and R&B stars like Noora and Winta.
Record Labels
- Big Dipper Records
- Norske Gram
- Tee Productions
- Rune grammofon
- Simax
- Tuba Records
- Smalltown Supersound
- Duplex
- Deathlike Silence
See Also
Samples
- Download recording of "Aa kjore vatten, aa kjore ve", an a cappella Norwegian-American folk song from the Library of Congress' California Gold: Northern California Folk Music from the Thirties Collection; performed by Alf Nilssen on February 18, 1939 in Carmel, California
External Links
- Norwegian pop music - article from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (http://www.odin.dep.no/odin/engelsk/norway/history/032091-991364/index-dok000-b-n-a.html)
- The History of Music in Norway - article from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (http://www.odin.dep.no/odin/engelsk/norway/history/032005-990475/index-dok000-b-n-a.html)
- Norwegian Bandindex (http://bandindex.no/)
- Urørt (Untouched) - Download songs from 7000 New norwegian bands (http://www11.nrk.no/urort/)
References
- Cronshaw, Andrew. "Fjords and Fiddles". 2000. In Broughton, Simon and Ellingham, Mark with McConnachie, James and Duane, Orla (Ed.), World Music, Vol. 1: Africa, Europe and the Middle East, pp 211-218. Rough Guides Ltd, Penguin Books. ISBN 1-85828-636-0