Ole Paus and Ketil Bjørnstad: Frolandia
Ole Paus and Ketil Bjørnstad come to the traditional midnight concert in Kongsberg church with their collaborative project Frolandia.
Ole Paus og Ketil Bjørnstad have very different starting points for their musical activities, but at this year's big festival concert in Kongsberg church, they meet in the work 'Frolandia' and convincingly demonstrate how differences can be united in something new and whole.
The collaboration between Bjørnstad and Paus goes back many years. They have always been able to elicit something innovative and creative in each other. With her background in traditional music - in its many guises - Annbjørg Lien adds a new and personal touch to the musical whole. Ketil Bjørnstad lived for many years on Vestre Sandøya by Tvedestrand, and then he was not only captivated by the adopted beautiful coastal nature, but was also struck by the beauty of the inland landscape, as he encountered it in Froland. The music becomes a tribute to this nature, and not just to Froland, but to all the apparently modest villages and landscapes that make up such an important part of Norway; and of course to the people who live there. Bjørnstad's lyrics are conveyed by Ole Paus, as no one else can, and with the geographical framework of rolling hills, fields and meadows, rivers and waterfalls and ponds – and farms and human homes, the lyrics also become a way of understanding – to 'My little country'.
In January, Frolandia was recorded in the studio of Annbjørg Lien and Bjørn Ole Rasch.
Frolandia:
Ketil Bjørnstad (piano), Ole Paus (vocals), Marie Klåpbakken (harding fiddle, keyed harp), Rolf Kristensen (guitar), Ole Kelly Kvamme (bass), Tom Rudi Torjussen (drums)
Annbjørg Lien was originally supposed to be at the concert, but has had to cancel. She is replaced by fiddler and singer Marie Klåpbakken.
