Førde Folk Music Festival and Fjord Country

3MA

Ballake Cissoko

Fjord Reflection

No wide angle can capture Kviknes Hotel

Gravlak Salmon to die for

Ferry wind modeled
by Francis and Andrew

Fjord Paradise

Photos by Dore Stein

except where noted

At the WOMEX music conference in Sevilla I met Torill Faleide, a wonderful lady (and top volley ball player), who is one of the organizers of the Førde Folk Music Festival in Førde, Norway. I was unfamiliar with the festival and had surface knowledge of Norwegian folk music. Torill planted the seed of inviting me to the festival. The invite came to fruition as Torill arranged through the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to invite 25 members of the international media. Our group was a mini United Nations as 17 nationalities were represented and made hanging out quite stimulating. I was particularly captivated by two women from Shanghai and four Tuaregs from Northern Mali. The majority of the group members were festival organizers as were the Tuaregs, who produce the annual Festival in the Desert.

The trip was divided into two parts: 3 days exploring the spectacular fjords and 4 days at the festival. I had not been to Norway and had no expectations. The Gods were on our side from the start as the weather was sunny and in the mid 80's. This was a pleasant surprise to even the locals as Norway may have about 12 of these days a year.

I landed in Oslo with two American colleagues and flew to charming Bergen, which is a UNESCO World Heritage City. It is the gateway to the fjords, surrounded by water and mountains. The first night I walked around Bergen without realizing how late it was. This is easy to do as it doesn't get dark during the summer. There is a prolonged dusk from about midnight to 3 am and then the sky brightens for another 21 hour dayathon. I took the last local bus back to my hotel and got barely 3 hours sleep. The next day our group took a stunning train ride through Northern Europe's largest mountain plateau to the heart of fjord country. Norway has the longest non-ice fjords on earth (Greenland has the icy honor) and Norway boasts the longest tunnel, smack through the mountains - I recall our guide saying it was 25 km (about 15.5 miles).

Our trip was expertly organized and guided. Thank-you Silje, Aslak and Elisabeth! Every leg of our journey had a different local specialist. What blew me away during the journey were the ubiquitous waterfalls. I also was mesmerized by the shimmering fjords that were so pure and still, that it was difficult to tell actual scenery from its reflection. The whole fjord landscape is a conservation area and is designated on the World Heritage List. We visited the idyllic village of Balestrand along the shores of the dramatic Sognefjord. This picturesque and unspoiled village is home to the longest building in Norway and maybe in Northern Europe - the Kviknes Hotel where our group stayed. It dates to the 1700's and its Swiss chalet-style has been run by the same family since 1877. Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany was a frequent guest and more recently Kofi Annan and Eric Clapton have found solace there. Life is tranquil in Balestrand and most everything is sustained through the local economy. Norway subsidizes rural economies so that employment stays intact. Hence there is no need for rural folks to migrate to urban centers in search of work.

On July 2 we took a stunning ride to Førde and the festival started that evening. There were 300 artists representing 30 nationalities. The theme was "World Voices" and featured some of the world's best vocal ensembles. The festival had a good balance of Norwegian traditional groups and acts from around the globe. I was intrigued by a couple of cross-pollinating projects that I'll detail in a moment. To my delight the production value, organization and overall execution was the best of any festival I've attended. There was an attempt to make the venue fit the vibe of the music. For example, the Corsican polyphonic a cappella group A Filetta performed in a church. Some groups were scheduled to perform out in nature near the fjords and buses were organized to escort whomever wished to go.

Near to my heart is musical cross-pollination. I love when two or more cultures combine and the result is a singular voice that transcends their cultures. The festival highlight for me was 3MA. I saw this group twice as it may be the Tangential discovery of the year. It features 3 string masters from African countries beginning with MA: Ballaké Sissoko on kora from MAli, valiha master Rajery from MAdagascar and MAroc (Morocco) oudist Driss El Malouma. Their chemistry was outstanding as sounds weaved in and out naturally. It makes one wonder why there aren't more attempts at cross-cultural African projects? The kora has become Africa's primary cross-cultural instrument vehicle. I know of kora collaborations with Indian, Persian, Greek, Turkish, and flamenco, and they do work well. But this achieved a singular blending like none I've heard. The only bummer is they were out of cd's so I have one on order.

Another cross-pollinating concert was Qawwali-Gospel featuring Faiz Ali Faiz and Craig Adams and the Voices of New Orleans. Qawwali and gospel are divine, ecstatic spiritual music to the nth degree. I was curious how the styles would mesh musicially. They didn't. It was a grand attempt but failed to integrate cohesively. When Craig's group was in the lead, Faiz' ensemble seemed lost and even disinterested. When Faiz had the spotlight, Craig fueled the keyboards adequately and his singers tried to reinforce the Qawwali refrains and provide spirited hand claps, but it didn't come together for me.

A third cross-cultural collaboration was the unlikely pairing of Sami joiker Inga Juuso and jazz bassist Steinar Raknes in the duo Skaidi. Steinar is a daring bassist who also vocalizes; imagine Tom Waits adopted by Tuvans. There were brilliant moments but Inga's joiking didn't vary enough to sustain my interest over a 30 minute set.

One highlight that came out of the blue was called The Snuff Grinders. This dance company won the 2009 Eurovison music contest and put on a dance spectacle combining Norwegian Halling dance, Brazilian Capoeira and break dancing. The music was nothing much but the acrobatics and dancing were impressive. The break dancer was the best I've seen, combining athleticism and creativity to wow the crowd. He told me afterwards he's from a tiny village in the north of Norway that has a hip-hop scene. His name is Knut Rundereim but most call him by his dance name: bboy arctic. You can Facebook him.

The trip seemed like a dream. Things abruptly changed once my departure was underway. I was greeted by a 3+ hour flight delay at the Oslo airport due to a problem with US Airways aircraft. This prevented me from connecting to the San Francisco flight and forced an unwanted overnight in Las Vegas, the anti-Norway. In a cruel parting shot the perverse jokers in Vegas even name its main road to the airport "Paradise". They don't know from paradise. I've been there. It's Balestrand, Norway.

Dore Stein