Musician's prize to Henriette Eilertsen
Henriette Eilertsen has been awarded the Kongsberg Jazz Festival's musician prize for 2024. The prize of NOK 200.000 was awarded during the jazz festival's opening, and is awarded to musicians who have made a strong mark on the Norwegian jazz scene.
For the first time in the award's history, the award winner has flute as their main instrument and Henriette Eilertsen was the first to take a bachelor's degree in jazz flute. Within a few years, she has established herself as a clear voice on the Norwegian and Scandinavian jazz and improv scene. Not only is she an outstanding musician, but has also distinguished herself as a band leader and organiser.
Henriette has her own trio which debuted with the solo album "Poems for Flute" in 2021. It was very positively received and also received a Spellemann nomination. The album she made together with the band "Master Oogway" the following year was also nominated for Spellemann.
- Henriette Eilertsen is a key musician in several bands, and it is worth noting how in demand she is when fellow musicians present their commissioned works and projects, says festival director Ragnhild Menes. At Kongsberg, she participated in Anja Lauvdal and Thomas Strønen's prize-winning works in 2022 and 2023 and she is also often heard with the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra.
This year's award winner has also distinguished himself as an organiser. She started and is the artistic director of the "Youth improv orchestra", and not least she was one of the people who established OJKOS (Orchestra for jazz composers in Oslo) in 2018, and she both composes and arranges for this band - which has shown itself to be an important center of power in Norwegian jazz and a development engine for young composers and musicians. The prize winner received the news a couple of weeks ago. - I have thought several times that I have to check when I have to travel to be at the award ceremony in Kongsberg, but then I think that "No, I think I have dreamed" says Henriette Eilertsen, and continues - I am very grateful and happy me to show lots of cool music at the jazz festival in 2025.
Not a price for long and faithful service
The DNB award is one of the most prestigious awards within Norwegian jazz. The prize is NOK 200.000, and as part of the prize, the prize winner is invited back to the festival the following year to perform a series of concerts. Last year it was bassist and composer Per Zanussi who received the DNB prize, and he can be seen with several projects at this year's festival; the order body Liminal Beings, Særingfest Friday, Zanussi4.
Kongsberg Jazzfestival's musician award is not an award given for long and faithful service, but an award with a double intention - both to recognize the musical effort up to now, and to give the award winner a stimulating boost going forward. We appreciate what has been done - and have high expectations for what is to come. The award is primarily given to musicians who have put a personal stamp on their musical expression. The music must be of high quality and stand out in the musical landscape.
