Nordisk Suite – strings, folk traditions and cross-genre collaboration
About the Lab
NordSync Lab #4 is a practical, collaborative workshop exploring music across classical and folk traditions, with a particular focus on artistic exchange between Norway and Sweden.
The Lab is built around Nordisk Suite, a newly composed work by Bodvar Drotninghaug Moe, where classical string players and folk musicians meet in a shared musical landscape. The project explores how different traditions, playing styles, and artistic approaches can interact, merge, and challenge each other.
Participants will take part in a first reading session of the work together with professional musicians, experimenting with ensemble playing, communication across traditions, and new forms of artistic collaboration.
The Lab is open to string players and folk musicians who are interested in:
- working with new music
- exploring cross-genre collaboration
- developing ensemble skills in a creative setting
Date: 25 April 2026
Time: 13:00–16:30
Location: Folkets Hus, Umeå
Mentors
Sunniva Herland Monstad
Violinist and Hardanger fiddle player
Sunniva Herland Monstad (b. 1997) is a violinist and Hardanger fiddle player from Bergen, educated at the Norwegian Academy of Music.
In recent years, she has performed with leading Norwegian ensembles, including the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, the Norwegian Radio Orchestra (KORK), the Norwegian National Opera & Ballet, and the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. Since 2024, she has been an academist with the Tonkünstler Orchestra in Vienna and a member of Ensemble Allegria in Oslo.
With a strong connection to her roots, Sunniva has spent the past six years immersing herself in the folk music traditions of Nordhordland. Based on this work, she founded the festival Bøkelyden, aiming to revitalise and carry forward local folk traditions.
She is also an active chamber musician and is passionate about communicating music in a direct and authentic way.
Bodvar Drotninghaug Moe
Composer, arranger and musician
Bodvar Drotninghaug Moe is a Norwegian composer with a broad and versatile artistic profile. His work spans classical and contemporary music, often engaging with folk traditions and interdisciplinary formats.
He has composed numerous works for chamber ensembles, orchestras, and stage productions, and has collaborated with professional musicians and institutions across the Nordic region. In addition to his artistic work, he is an experienced educator and workshop leader, with a strong focus on composition, creative processes, and artistic development.
Artistic Focus
NordSync Lab #4 explores:
- collaboration between classical and folk musicians
- interaction between Norwegian and Swedish traditions
- new approaches to ensemble playing
- the balance between written material and improvisation
- artistic processes in the development of new music
The Lab functions both as a creative workshop and a development platform, where ideas are tested in real time and shaped through collaboration between participants and mentors.
Showcase Presentation
Blå Vegen kultursamarbeid: Nordisk Suite – Work in Progress
Presentation of the results from NordSync Lab #4, including live performance excerpts and introduction to the artistic concept and process.
Date: 25 April 2026
Time: 18:30– 19:00
Location: Folkets Hus – Stage, Umeå
NordSync Project 