The soloist in contemporary piano concerti

Ellen Kristine Ugelvik

The project grew out of a need to improve my ability to tackle challenges I had faced playing contemporary piano concerti. The embodying of new aesthetics is a great challenge in premieres of new works. While the soloist has great potential for expressing personal artistic ideas within a large-scale concert-hall environment, the classical pianist education just does not cover all challenges of performing brand new concerti. The new music suffers. The general lack of contemporary music in educational repertoires has consequences for how the field of classical music develops, what kind of music we value, how we work and what kind of music we play and listen to in a musical society. I wanted to explore the potential of my role and investigate how I could behave and play to help to improve the sounding result of new piano concerti. I created this project with the overarching research question: Which abilities do I need to develop further, and to enable a progressive soloist role when faced with challenges in entirely new music, and what are the extended effects of such an expanded role awareness? As the project moved forward, this progressive role awareness, I discovered, was useful to me by giving me greater flexibility and confidence about the massive collective apparatus surrounding the new piano concerti. The project is based around five new piano concerti I have premiered at national and international venues: Diamond Dust by D. Fujikura, Konsertstykke i tre deler by M. Hegdal, at the tips of my fingers / on the tip of my tongue by B.L. Thorsen, Wowen Fingerprints by T.B. Ulvo and Theory of the Subject by T. Reinholdtsen. Through the evolution of these works, I examine the role of the soloist in all the processes of musical creation, from initialization to realisation in performance. The research material provides insights into how new music is dealt with in the standard classical music world. I provide rare awareness of the role of the soloist and suggest several improvements of how we lay the foundations for premiering new music. A central outcome of my project is a ‘toolbox’ of proposed techniques and approaches for pianists encountering new works. The toolbox, I argue, is also valuable when applied to older music and to how we approach any musical situation on a general level.

Artistic results

Diamond Dust (2013) by Dai Fujikura

Premiere of Diamond Dust by Dai Fujikura at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival 2013

Oslo Sinfonietta, Christian Eggen, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Recording by BBC radio, video by Matt Hartgrave.

Konsertstykke i tre deler (2015) by Magne Hegdal

Premiere of Concert Piece in three sections by Magne Hegdal, Store Studio 2015 Kringkastningsorkesteret, Bjarte Engeset, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik, piano Video/recording by NRK

at the tips of my fingers / on the tip of my tongue (2015) by Bente Leiknes Thorsen

Premiere of at the tips of my fingers / on the tip of my tongue by Bente Leiknes Thorsen at The reflective musician festival 2015 Ensemble Allegria, Berit Cardas, leader, Ellen Ugelvik, piano Video: Millimedia.no

Woven Fingerprints (2015) by Therese Birkelund Ulvo

First page of the score of Woven Fingerprints

Theory of the subject (2016) by Trond Reinholdtsen

Premiere of Theory of the Subject by Trond Reinholdtsen at Ultima Contemporary Music Festival 2016 Oslo-Filharmonien, Cathrine Winnes, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik, piano, Trond Reinholdtsen, Tobias Schülke Recording by Sean Lewis, video by Millimedia.no

LP | Lyriske stykker (2013) by Christian Blom / Ellen Ugelvik

CD | Plastic Waves (2013) by Øyvind Torvund

CD | Ellen Ugelvik plays Magne Hegdal and Anton Reicha (2016)

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Concert recording of Plastic Waves for piano and ensemble by Øyvind Torvund at the Ultima Contemporary Music Festival 14.9.2015 Asamisimasa: Anders Førisdal, guitar, Tanja Orning, cello, Håkon Stene, percussion, Kristine Tjøgersen, clarinet, Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Plastic Waves for piano and ensemble was composed by Øyvind Torvund in 2013

Commissioned by asamisimasa with support from The Norwegian Art Council

Premiered at Musiques d’aujourd’hui, Luxenburg Philharmonie 11.10.2013 by asamisimasa: Anders Førisdal, guitar, Tanja Orning, cello, Håkon Stene, percussion, Kristine Tjøgersen, clarinet, Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Other performances: Ultraschall Berlin 2015, Kwadrofonik Festival Warzava 2015, Ultima Contemporary Music Festival 2015

Recorded on Aurora 2015

Øyvind Torvund is working on a new piece for asamisimasa, to be premiered in 2018

Ellen Ugelvik plays Magne Hegdal and Anton Reicha was released in 2016 on Aurora records.

Practische Beispiele no. 23 (1803) by Anton Reicha. Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Konsertstykke i tre deler / Concert Piece in three sections (2013-14) by Magne Hegdal. Kringkastningsorkesteret, Bjarte Engeset, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Practische Beispiele no. 3 (1803) by Anton Reicha. Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Songs and Flowers (Annotations VIII-XVII) (2004) by Magne Hegdal. Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Other performances of Songs and Flowers (Annotations VIII-XVII): Borealis Bergen/NO, Risør Chamber Music Festival, Risør/NO, Serynade solo recital, Norwegian Academy of Music, Oslo/NO, Nesodden Kulturisten, Oslo/NO, ppIANISSIMO festival, Sofia/BG

at the tips of my fingers / on the tip of my tongue was composed by Bente Leiknes Thorsen 2014-2015

Commissioned by Ellen Ugelvik with support from Det norske komponistfond

Premiered at The reflective musician festival 16.4.2015 by Ensemble Allegria, Berit Cardas, leader, Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Broadcasted on NRK P2 radio 2015

Bente Leiknes Thorsen was nominated to Edvard-prisen 2016 for at the tips of my fingers / on the tip of my tongue

The piano concerto led to a new commission of a work by Bente Leiknes Thorsen for solo piano: with my ear to the ground (at the tips of my fingers), premiered at ppIANISSIMO festival, Sofia/BG 17.4.2016

Woven Fingerprints was composed by Therese Birkelund Ulvo in 2015

Commissioned by Kristiansand Symfoniorkester with support from The Norwegian Art Council for the celebration of the centenary of Norwegian women’s suffrage in 2013

Workshop Kilden Concert Hall 17.08.2015 with Kristiandsand Symfoniorkester, Ingar Bergby, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik and Andreas Ulvo, piano.

Premiere cancelled

Theory of the Subject was composed by Trond Reinholdtsen in 2015-16

Commissioned by Ultima Contemporary Music Festival with support from The Norwegian Art Council

Premiered at Ultima Contemporary Music Festival 15.9.2016 by Oslo-Filharmonien, Cathrine Winnes, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik, piano, Trond Reinholdtsen, Tobias Schülke

Broadcasted on NRK P2 2016

Trond Reinholdtsen is working on a new piece for asamisimasa, to be premiered in 2017. Oslo-filharmonien and Ellen Ugelvik will premiere a new piano concerto 15.9.2017, composed by Jan Erik Mikalsen.

Lyriske stykker was composed by Christian Blom 2007-12

Commissioned by Ellen Ugelvik with support from The Norwegian Art Council

Vokterens sang was premiered at a house concert in Madonna’s former residence in Beverly Hills in Los Angeles in 2012. The full cycle was premiered at Only Connect Festival of Sound, Oslo/NO. Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Other performances: Official opening of NMBU, Ås/NO, Klimafestivalen, Oslo/NO, Serynade solo recital, Norwegian Academy of Music, Oslo/NO, ppIANISSIMO festival, Sofia/BG, Grunnsteinnedleggelse, National Museum Oslo/NO

Butterfly was repertoire of choice in the Grieg competition 2016, Bergen/NO

Christian Blom is considering expanding the cycle with some more movements.

Recording & score available at Dropbox

Diamond Dust was composed by Dai Fujikura in 2012

Commissioned by Ellen Ugelvik with support from The Norwegian Art Council

Co-commissioned by Remix Ensemble

Premiered at Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival 23.11.2013 by Oslo Sinfonietta, Christian Eggen, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Broadcasted on BBC3 Radio 2013

Second performance by Remix Ensemble, Peter Rundel, conductor, Mei Yi Foo, piano

View score

Konsertstykke i tre deler / Concert Piece in three sections was composed by Magne Hegdal in 2013 Commissioned by Ellen Ugelvik with support from The Norwegian Art Council for the celebration of the bicentenary of the Norwegian Constitution in 2014

Premiered in Store Studio 28.1.2015 by Kringkastningsorkesteret, Bjarte Engeset, conductor, Ellen Ugelvik, piano

Broadcasted on NRK2 2015

Watch video on NRK.no

Ellen Kristine Ugelvik

Bibliography

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