Elja

Kronos Quartet | Benedicte Maurseth | Kristine Tjøgersen

Thursday 18 September, at 21:00–22:00

350–495 kr

Imagine a musical score populated by animals of all kinds. Kronos Quartet lifts their bows – and meets the sound of Norwegian nature.

Hardangervidda, the largest mountain plateau in Europe, is a place where species from north and south meet – and where ecosystems and traditions have evolved side by side for centuries. In Norwegian culture, it carries associations of wilderness, resilience, and belonging, and holds myths, images, and rhythms that resonate through both arts and crafts.

Benedicte Maurseth and Kristine Tjøgersen are part of a new generation of Norwegian composers deeply engaged with questions of ecology, place, and the ways in which we perceive our surroundings.

Together they have created Elja, a musical response to the vast nature of Hardangervidda. In this living soundscape, figures such as the ptarmigan, snowy owl, wolverine, whimbrel and Lapland longspur appear, alongside smaller creatures like frogs and insects.

Elja is performed by Kronos Quartet, an ensemble that for decades has explored the terrain of contemporary music with rare persistence and curiosity. Reflecting that spirit, the piece brings together a newly developed set of traditional instruments – Hardanger fiddles, Hardanger viola and Hardanger cello – specially crafted by instrument maker Ottar Kåsa. The quartet is joined by composer Benedicte Maurseth as soloist on Hardanger fiddle.

The music embraces the resonant strings, alternative tunings and enveloping acoustic spaces of these traditional instruments, while opening tradition to new sonic worlds. Evelina Dembacke contributes with a visual design inspired by the unique flora of the mountain plateau, the shifting weather, and the changing daylight.

Elja opens our ears to the mountain’s fragility, and celebrates the beauty of what still remains.

Facts

Elja (New Norwegian): to raise or foster. Example: raise animals (elje opp dyr)
The work is performed at Riksscenen, Norway’s national stage for folk music.
Kronos Quartet and Benedicte Maurseth performs on traditional Norwegian instruments made by luthier Ottar Kåsa.
Kristine Tjøgersen is an award-winning composer. She was recently awarded two Norwegian Spellemann Awards and the Ernst von Siemens Composer Prize.
Fiddle soloist Benedicte Maurseth on the piece: "With Elja, we want to ‘raise’ a deep respect for nature – and remind ourselves that we are all mutually dependent on one another."