Musical tour at a short-distance gala concert

As always, the festival gala offers a varied taste of a diverse world of sounds and traditions. This year's festival gala takes us to the Baltic coast, Ireland, Hedmark, Zimbabwe and Sunnmøre, without crossing a single border. 

The opening concert and the gala concert are the biggest productions during Førdefestivalen Here the audience will encounter a number of different artists and music from different parts of the world. The musicians who will take the stage during this year's festival are more short-traveled than we may be used to, but the music they bring comes from both other counties and other continents.

The evening's host is Kari Slaatsveen, a familiar radio voice to many after 25 years at NRK. With her charming humor, she will guide us on our musical journey. 

Bjørnblakken (Hedmarken)

The musicians in Bjørnblakken are all highly sought-after round dance musicians from the Inland and Trøndelag regions, and their main repertoire is the elegant country music from Hedmark. This is danceable, this is raw, and this is extraordinarily fun.

Bjørn Kåre Odde - fiddle
Ole Nilssen - accordion
Ronny Kjøsen - accordion
Jon Amund Karusbakken - double bass
Geir Byre - guitar

Busi Ncube band (Zimbabwe)

Sibusisiwe Ncube, better known simply as Busi Ncube, brings authentic rhythms from Zimbabwe. In her homeland, she had a breakthrough with the song True Love, which became one of the most popular songs in Zimbabwe ever. Zimbabwe has a very rich musical tradition, which includes several languages, rhythm patterns, vocal traditions and countless instruments. Since her debut at the age of 19, Busi Ncube has established herself as one of Zimbabwe's leading artists, and an important ambassador for the rich musical traditions of her homeland.

Busi Ncube - vocals, mbira, guitar
Kristin Sevaldsen - saxophone
Antonio Thorner - drums
Gaute Storsve - guitar
Petter Barg - bass guitar
Henrik Mosnes - keyboards

Frikar (Norway)

Frikar is known for his groundbreaking exploration of Norwegian folk dance, not least the acrobatic, masculine lausdanse. This year, Frikar will be performing at Førdefestivalen with new questions: What can a woman be? What happens to the gender roles in Norwegian folk dance when women in 2020 get to play both roles and take the most intense “carnival pieces”? During the gala concert, the audience gets a taste of the performance SKAUT, where choreographer Hallgrim Hansegård and five co-creative dancers focus on the themes of covering, uncovering and controlling the body.

Sara Enger Larsen - dance
Ornilia Percia Ubisse - dance
Anita Vika Langødegård - dance
Sigyn Åsa Sætereng - dance
Maren Hjertø - dance
Hallgrim Hansegård - choreographer

Female duo (Nordfjord/Sunnmøre)

Kviven is the mountain that separates Hornindal in Nordfjord from Austefjorden in Sunnmøre, so Kviven duo was a natural choice of name when Hornindal fiddle player Britt Pernille Frøholm and Volda-Romsdalen native Jorun Marie Kvernberg joined forces to convey new and old songs from this area. The interplay is fresh and first-class, whether they throw themselves into driving springers - or a calm waltz, rhythmic reindeer herder or folk tunes.

Jorun Marie Kvernberg - fiddle, Hardanger fiddle, vocals and harp playing
Britt Pernille Frøholm - fiddle, Hardanger fiddle

Anders Lillebo Trio (Norway/Shetland)

Anders Lillebo thought he would become a jazz pianist, but then he fell in love. At a folk music festival in Ireland, he fell head over heels for the folk music of the island. Shortly after, he moved to Ireland where he lived for two years in the bustling music scene of Galway. Here he got to study and play with some of the best folk musicians in Ireland. To Førde He comes with his trio, which for this occasion has two new members, Kevin Henderson on fiddle and Ronny Kjøsen on piano. 

Anders Lillebo - accordion
Kevin Henderson - fiddle
Ronny Kjøsen - piano

Novgorod (Norway/Baltic Sea)

Novgorod gives us the music of low wooden towns on the Baltic Sea, of headless vodka parties with pickles, honey and sour cream in the low-rise blocks of the post-war era. They bring the fiery music that flowed from the cabaret room, that floated up from the dance floor by the river - and the waltzes, the most beautiful in the world. Novgorod brings out this music that is Russian, Finnish, Jewish, Northern Swedish and Gypsy. Minor-dominated and melancholic. Wild and vital!

Gabriel Fliflet - accordion, vocals
David Chelsom Vogt - fiddle, vocals
Kristoffer Chelsom Vogt - double bass, vocals
Jørgen Sandvik - guitar, vocals