(Un-) settling Sites and Styles

Einar Røttingen

(Un-)settling sites and styles: In search of new expressive means. Eight performers (voice, piano, violin, cello), one musicologist and one composer aspired to unsettle their habitual ways of working with musical interpretation of 20th century and contemporary Norwegian composers. By collaborating to develop new perspectives and methods, they investigated questions of style and how different sites influenced their rehearsals and performances. How do performers find new expressive means? How can intersubjective exchange within a research group contribute to articulating tacit knowledge? How can mutual unsettling approaches influence conventional or subjective attitudes of fidelity to a score or a performance tradition? How can novel sounds, musical material and musical meaning emerge beyond prejudiced conceptions or through improvisation? The three-year project was facilitated by the Norwegian Artistic Research Programme and the Faculty of Fine Art, Music and Design (Grieg Academy), University of Bergen, and resulted in texts, sound recordings, videos, and new commented score editions.

(Un-)settling sites and styles

- in Search of New Expressive Means

Introduction

Acknowledgements

Expressive means

Unsettling and unlearning

Unsettling sites and styles

Methological approaches

The individual projects

Results and documentation

References

SITE MAP

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES ABOUT HILDE SVEEN

AND TORLEIF TORGERSEN

Hilde Haraldsen Sveen

The singer Hilde Haraldsen Sveen works as an Associate Professor at the Grieg Academy, University of Bergen. She has her education from Agder Musikkonservatorium and Hochshule der Künste Berlin where she studied with Professors Ingrid Figur and Aribert Reimann. Sveen did her final exam in 1994 followed by several engagements in German opera houses. In 2001 she made her debut at the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet in Oslo as Gilda in Verdi’s Rigoletto. Subsequent to her debut, she has appeared in leading roles there. Sveen is a versatile singer and sought-after soloist. She has been soprano soloist in Arne Norheim’s “Eco” (with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra), “The Tempest” (with Stavanger Symphony Orchestra) and “Aftonland” (with Bit20 Ensemble). In 2010 she sang the soprano part in Knut Vaage’s “Høgsongen”. CD-recordings include Sigurd Islandsmoen’s “Requiem”, Fartein Valen’s songs Op. 6 (with string quartet), songs by Sverre Jordan, “Millom Roser” (songs by Edvard Grieg), “Shadow songs” (Norwegian songs) and chamber works by Ketil Hvoslef. In 2018 she received support from the Norwegian Academy of Music (CEMPE funds) for the educational research project “På innsiden” (on the inside), about the inner workings of the voice. She initiated a cooperation with the Haukeland hospital which became an important part of her research project: “Lines and Limits”.

Torleif Torgersen

Torleif Torgersen is a Professor of Piano at the Grieg Academy, University of Bergen. He was born in Bergen and made his debut in Oslo in 1992. He studied with Einar Steen-Nøkleberg, Eva Knardahl and Lazar Berman at the Norwegian Academy of Music and with Liisa Pohjola at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. He received his Diploma in 1993 and joined the MiN-ensemble in Northern Norway the same year. With this sinfonietta type ensemble he toured in Norway and Europe and made several CD recordings, also of works composed especially for him.

His first solo CD from 1995 with works by the Norwegian composers Fartein Valen and Lasse Thoresen (Simax PSC1105) was nominated for a Norwegian Grammy. Other solo recordings include the complete piano works of Norwegian composer Klaus Egge (PSC1131) and selected piano works by Carl Arnold on fortepiano (PSC1305) and the “Piano Concerto” Op. 16 and “Grand Sextet” Op. 23 (PSC1344) with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra and Rinaldo Allessandrini.

He has performed at many international festivals among them the Berliner Festwochen, St. Petersburg festival and the Prague Festival.

Since 2005 Torleif Torgersen performed with violinist Shlomo Mintz in concerts in most of Europe as well as Israel, Japan and South America. As a performer on historical instruments Torleif Torgersen has held many concerts and lectures. His teachers include Liv Glaser as well as Malcolm Bilson and Bart van Oort.

S C R O L L D O W N

lines and limits

further reading about the project

biographical notes about

Hilde Haraldsen Sveen

and Torleif Torgersen