Nils Okland

Bris Nils Okland

Nils Økland is an innovative violinist and Hardanger fiddle specialist who is creatively expanding the range of the traditional music of his homeland. He is a renewer of folk music, consistently building bridges to classical, contemporary and improvised musics. His playing combines freedom with respect for Norway's musical heritage. He is concerned both with the preservation of the oral folk music tradition and with the experimental possibilities of the music when it is charged with modern impulses. Bris, meaning 'Breeze', is Økland´s third album, his second for Rune Grammofon, and the first where practically all the material is written by himself. This is quite unusual for the genre, but only emphasizes his interest to move in new directions and to explore new possibilities in his instruments and his playing, both solo and with a group. The group assembled for this recording is in itself ample proof of genre crossing, with Sigbjørn Apeland the only one left from previous albums Blå Harding and Straum (RCD 2015). Per Oddvar Johansen and Mats Eilertsen (Food, etc.) are young veterans of the flowering Norwegian jazz scene, while Håkon Stene, who appeared on Jono El Grande´s Fevergreens (RCD 2031), comes from the classical world. Parts of the album are based on music Økland wrote for Melankolia, a play based on Jon Fosse´s novel about the Norwegian painter Lars Hertervig (1830-1902). 2005.