BRYGGEN

A musical journey through Scandinavia and the Baltic states The iconic music of Arvo Pärt is an inspiration for countless people because of its timeless and almost ethereal quality. The purity and freedom in his music touches the longing for comfort and silence in times of confusion and unrest. Silence is just as important in Pärt's work as the notes. This is very noticeable in the piece ‘Summa’, which means ‘the essence’. Over the entire piece hangs an atmosphere of a kind of stilled beauty and unobtrusiveness, despite the fact that the complexity and tension increase gradually. This gives it the character of a meditation. Pärt composed ‘Summa’ in 1977 for choir, in 1991 the version for string orchestra followed. ‘Solveig’s Lullaby’ is one of the most moving pieces by Edvard Grieg and is part of his incidental music for ‘Peer Gynt’. In this song, Solveig expresses a deep, unconditional love and patience while she continues to wait for Peer's return. The music is simple and soft, with a rocking melody that is reminiscent of a lullaby, but at the same time evokes a feeling of melancholy and hope. The piece forms an emotional highlight and symbolizes loyalty, forgiveness, and inner peace. With his ‘Holberg Suite’, Grieg wrote a suite in an old style with the typical sequence of dances from the 17th century: prelude, gavotte, sarabande, musette, and air. Grieg composed the work in memory of the Norwegian writer Ludvig Holberg, creator of comedies and innovator of Danish and Norwegian literature. Just like Holberg, Grieg was also born in the Norwegian city of Bergen, known for its atmospheric historic quay with trading houses called 'Bryggen'. Het Danish String Quartet - 3 Danes and 1 Norwegian - released a CD in 2014 with only their own arrangements of their beloved Scandinavian folk music. Title of the album: Wood Works. ‘On this recording we have borrowed and arranged a selection of tunes that are all very close to our hearts. We perform them as a string quartet, one of the most powerful musical vehicles we know of. The string quartet is a pure construct: four simple instruments made of wood.’ BRYGGEN brings some of these folk melodies in an adapted version for string orchestra. About BRYGGEN Fearlessly, string orchestra BRYGGEN sets course for the north, from its home port of Bruges following the old Hanseatic network, to Scandinavia and the Baltics. In search of new sounds and connection with the wide world around. With combined forces, sometimes splashing against the current and then again harmoniously bathing in the rest of immeasurably deep fjords. BRYGGEN is a fresh and dynamic string orchestra that consciously chooses innovation both in terms of repertoire and presentation method. Every concert by BRYGGEN is an experience, for audience and performers. Fueled by artistic leader Jolente De Maeyer, the ensemble explores the sound idiom from Scandinavia and the Baltics, expanded with key works from 20th- and 21st-century postmodern music. BRYGGEN strongly believes in the power of a string orchestra and in the added value that playing with a smaller group offers in terms of timbre, interplay, communication, and focus. The ensemble works without a conductor and does everything possible to bring contemporary music to the heart of the audience through ear and eye. The symbiosis between text, music, image, and acting is therefore in the DNA of the projects that BRYGGEN carefully works out together with narrators, actors, writers, directors, choreographers, dancers, choir, performance artists... Yes, for BRYGGEN the future is very diverse.