Mellom fjell - Erlend Viken & Sanskriti Shrestha (Norway/Nepal)

Erlend Viken and Sanskriti Shrestha’s new work, Mellom fjell, will be premiered at the Norwegian Hub for Traditional Music and Dance, Riksscenen during Oslo World 2023. The work combines Norwegian tonal language with tabla traditions from Nepal and India.

Sanskriti and Erlend have played together on several occasions. No later than 2021 at the Førde Festival. Viken got the idea to combine tonal language in Norwegian fiddle traditions with time signatures and rhythm patterns from tabla traditions in Nepal and India. Erlend Viken comes from the mountain village of Oppdal, and Sanskriti Shrestha comes from Kathmandu, a city between two mountain ranges in Nepal. Both are inspired by nature in their composing work, and they examine the similarities and differences in their visual inspirations as composers. The musicians Anders Røine and Tanja Orning will join them this evening.

Erlend Viken

As already mentioned earlier, Erlend Viken is from Oppdal, but a resident at Nesodden. Viken is one of the prime Norwegian fiddle players. As a composer, he has composed several performances for the Frikar Dance company, the commissioned works Mengele Zoo for the Lillehammer Literature Festival, Sastrugi for the Festspillene in Northern Norway and Røros Folk Festival, and Djupet for the Ultima Festival, as well as most of the music for Erlend Viken Trio. Erlend has won the Landskappleiken in fiddle, and Intro-folk, and has been nominated for the Spellemann prize and won Folkelarm prizes for his records.

Sanskriti Shrestha

Sanskriti Shrestha is a Nepalese tabla player living in Oslo. She has actively mixed her traditional Nepalese and Indian roots with jazz, improvised, electronic music and other modern expressions. As well as being a creative musician, she is also a bandleader and adventurous composer. Shrestha has contributed musically to the groups she is involved in, including the band Moksha, her own band Avatar, duo with Andreas Wildhagen, as well as the new project Rythm Sutra, which plays her music.

All the musicians

Erlend Viken: fiddle, octave fiddle, harding fiddle
Sanskriti Shrestha: tablas
Anders Røine: harmonica, langleik, guitar
Tanja Orning: cello