VÅRFEST 2023 “Crossing Borders” International festival of NEW WORKS FOR VOICE August 30 – Sept 2, 2023

This year’s VårFEST promises an extraordinary program with internationally recognized composers and musicians, featuring exploratory vocal repertoire and musical theatre. Our theme this year is «Crossing Borders», where we are focusing on creating an open musical experience relevant to people everywhere. We are giving space to marginalized voices and promoting powerful tools for change, set against an existential environmental crisis and calls for freedom. We’ll experience renowned and upcoming composers and improvisers who represent different generations, nationalities, and traditions. The one thing they all have in common is that they’re bringing us all together to promote creativity and community building.

The festival opens on August 30 at Litteraturhuset with a launching event where the artistic director Kristin Norderval will present the festival’s program, followed by a discussion panel that delves into the history of improvisation: «50 Years of Improvising – The improvisation scene in «Norway-USA-Netherlands-Hungary-Iran». Join us for a welcome drink, the chance to win free festival tickets, and get the program book.

The festival program includes a variety of electroacoustic and acoustic works, musical theater works, an eco-opera, and a workshop with gestural controllers.

On 31.08 at the opening concert, the Norwegian audience will have the opportunity to experience European contemporary musical theater trends and approaches from the so-called Visegrad group countries Hungary, Czechia, Slovakia, and Poland. In addition, there will be world premieres by Oslo-based composers Mirsaeed Hosseiny Panah (IR/NO), and Vanessa Isobel Black (AU/GB/NO), and, works by Oslo-based Mariam Gviniashvili (GE/NO) and Gyrid Nordal Kaldestad (NO). The works are performed by VårFEST’s international guest artist, mezzo-soprano Anna Molnar from Hungary, and Norwegian soprano Amalie Kongssund.

On September 1 we present a special evening concert at Tøyen Kirke focused on deep democracy and the uplifting of marginalized voices with an added focus on the current women-led revolution in Iran. Featured on the program are premieres by Oslo-based composers Kosecka/Mofakham/Black, and a redesigned version of Cardew’s historic text score “Paragraph 7” from “The Great Learning” (1971) entitled – “Reboot – Still Learning: Cardew, Confucius & Confusion”.

We close the festival with the world premiere of “Crane Reflects on a Favor – an Eco-Opera” by Oslo-based composer Kristin Norderval, co-created with the ensemble, on september 2nd at Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo. “Crane Reflects on a Favor” is Part Two of the operatic diptych “The Sailmaker’s Wife”. The diptych is loosely based on the Japanese folktale “Tsuru no Ongaeshi” (Crane’s return of a favor). This post-operatic allegory; dream-like sonic performance installation, is performed in three parts by three female sopranos using gestural control to modify their voices, and an ensemble of acclaimed improvisers, among others, Miguel Frasconi (US) on glass instruments and Peter Van Bergen (NL) on the Contrabass clarinet.

We are excited to share with you VoxLAB’s 5th VÅRFEST festival. Welcome to celebrate with us at this «multi-dimensional voice party» (Ballade.no) called VårFEST!

Program:

30.08
FESTIVAL LAUNCH & DISCUSSION PANEL
Litteraturhuset 18:30
https://fb.me/e/5WnuUaIhy

With:
Peter Van Bergen (NL)
Miguel Fasconi (US)
Kristin Norderval (US/NO)
Gregory Vajda (HU)
Anna Molnár (HU)
Idin Samimi Mofakham (IR/NO)

31.08
OPENING CONCERT: UNTOLD STORIES
Majorstuen Kirke 19:00
https://fb.me/e/ynyaRsYn

Anna Molnár (HU)
Amalie Kongssund (NO)
Strax Saxophone Quartet (NO)
Josh Spear (UK/NO)
Sanae Yoshida (JP/NO)
Eivind Holmboe Leifsen (NO)
Martyna Kosecka (PL/NO)
Elżbieta Sikora (PL)
Lucie Vítková (CZ)
Mirsaeed Hosseiny Panah (IR/NO)
Gregory Vajda (HU)
Vanessa Isobel Black (AU/GB/NO)
Mariam Gviniashvili (GE/NO)
Gyrid Nordal Kaldestad (NO)
Iris Szeghy (SK)

01.09
CONCERT: WORDS & WORLDS
Tøyen Kirke 19:00
https://fb.me/e/SDv57W6g
Spectro Duo (IR/PL/NO)
Martyna Kosecka (PL/NO)
Idin Samimi Mofakham (IR/NO)
Vanessa Isobel Black (AU/GB/NO)
VoxLAB members

02.09
THE TIME WARP – Workshop and Demonstration with Kristin Norderval (US/NO)
Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo (KhiO) 13:00

CLOSING CONCERT: CRANE REFLECTS ON A FAVOR – AN ECO-OPERA KRISTIN NORDERVAL(US/NO) *WORLD PREMIERE*
Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo (KhiO) 19:00
https://fb.me/e/HBl0B8Mc
Kristin Norderval (US/NO)
Flora Ångman (SE/NO)
Viktoria Nikolova (NL/BG)
Rob Waring (US/NO)
Miguel Frasconi (US)
Viktor Bomstad (NO)
Peter van Bergen (NL)
Rosanna Vibe (NO)

WHAT IS VÅRFEST?
VårFEST is an international festival for new works for voice. VårFEST began in 2019, and has been held in Oslo over three to four days every year since. The content is mainly a new vocal repertoire developed by composers working with experimental vocal expression. Our theme this year is «Crossing Borders», where we are focusing on creating an open musical experience relevant to people everywhere. We are giving space to marginalized voices and promoting powerful tools for change, set against an existential environmental crisis and calls for freedom. We’ll experience renowned and upcoming composers and improvisers who represent different generations, nationalities, and traditions. The one thing they all have in common is that they’re bringing us all together to promote creativity and community-building.

Festival’s full program:
https://www.voxlab.no/varfest

Supported by:
Oslo Kommune
Norsk Komponistforening
Komponistenes Vederlagsfond
Det norske komponistfond
Embassy of Hungary in Oslo
Oslo National Academy of the Arts (Kunsthøgskolen i Oslo)
Kulturdirektoratet