Det mest performative aspekt af Linda Lamignans performative koncert på den lille bitte Ambereum scene var begyndelsen: Imens en fest af en hiphopkoncert fandt sted på Arena-scenen lige ved siden af, påbegyndte Lamignan og venner – sådan omtalte de sig selv – det David mod Goliat-agtige projekt, det var at opbygge en meditativ og »helende« atmosfære med hjælp fra røgelse og en varm, men teksturløs synthdrone. Der var noget sært fascinerende over projektet.
Det er som bekendt altid irriterende, når naboerne holder fest. Alligevel var Linda Lamignans optræden faktisk mest interessant i de første ti minutter, hvor de ydre omstændigheder gjorde dens eksistens allermest prekær. Koncerten – der bestod af en kombination af Lamignans sange og nogle digte, som medperformeren Noella Birisawa læste op fra en iPhone – var ikke uden sine lyspunkter: Lamignan opførte sin sange med indlevelse og storslået sans for dramatik og den fremragende trommeslager Deodato Siquir hamrede godt og grundigt på bækkenerne, når lydbilledet med faretruende hast nærmede sig den totale anonymitet.
Sangene og digtene kredsede om tematikker som at befinde sig mellem kulturer; at åbne sit sind; at tro på sig selv og andre; at se kærligheden over det hele; at gøre op med racisme og snævre kønsforestillinger. Gode og vigtige emner. Problemet var, at behandlingen af disse emner var nærmest overdrevet bogstavelig. Der var masser af digtning, men ikke så meget poesi; masser af sangskrivning, men ikke så meget musik.
»For me, music is a non-figurative process that cannot be definitively categorised.«
Kristoffer Raasted graduated as a visual artist from the Media School at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in 2018 and is currently completing a PhD in practice-based and artistic research. Raasted has been an artist in residence at the Danish Institute in Rome and a visiting researcher at UdK Sound Studies in Berlin as part of his PhD.
»When I search for new music, I search for sound that evokes images in my mind. It is fuel, a gateway to emotion, and my most important writing companion. When inspiration lapses, music is the tool that always jumpstarts it.«
Iain Forbes is a Scottish/Norwegian film director based in Oslo. He has studied film directing at Nordland College of Art and Film and the Norwegian Film School. His graduation film Revisited won a Student Academy Award in 2023. He has previously directed short films such as Snowman (2015) and Semper Fi (2017). His latest short After Dark won Best International Short Film at the Oscar-qualifying Foyle Film Festival in 2024
»Music, to me, is a companion through life, a premise, an excuse, a mystery, an explanation, a point of departure. It is old ideas, overlooked treasure chests, new angles, long concerts, doubt and conviction. It is words, tones, cracked voices, different points of departure, bass in the diaphragm, falsetto in the hair, challenges, rewards, and love.«
Nikolaj Nørlund made his solo debut with Navnløs (1996), an interpretation of poems by Michael Strunge, and released Nye Optagelser (1997) the following year, his first Danish-language singer-songwriter album. He has since worked broadly across music and poetry and is behind around 20 releases, both solo and in various band constellations. Nørlund’s projects range from collaborations with Copenhagen Phil on two orchestral albums, created together with author Naja Marie Aidt. His most recent release is the single »Englenes Park (nu ikke saa dark)«, the forerunner to the album Himlen skiftet ud, due for release at the end of November. In addition to his own work, Nørlund has, through the record label Auditorium, produced and released a number of Danish artists, including Niels Skousen, Ulige Numre, Jens Unmack, I Got You On Tape, and Martin Ryum. He was previously a member of Trains And Boats And Planes and periodically works with the English-language project Rhonda Harris. Nørlund has received a Danish Music Award (2003) and a Steppeulv (2006), both as Producer of the Year, as well as the Niels Mathiassen Cultural Award (2012).
»Music and sound for me is a language, the most present and fleeting one. It’s something that passes through your heart and becomes the past in a second. Music amplifies every emotion, love, happiness, anger, sadness a thousand times over, making me feel everything more deeply and sensitively.«
Sophia Sagaradze is a sound artist, composer, and performer from Georgia, based in Denmark. She experiments with space, multichannel electronics and audio-visual installations. Sagaradze is interested in creating works that explore the boundary between external and internal experiences of space. She holds a bachelor’s degree in classical composition from Tbilisi State Conservatory and a master’s degree in electronic composition from DIEM Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus/Aalborg. In 2022, she received the Carl Nielsen and Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen Foundation’s Talent Award in Composition. Sagaradze has performed in several countries, received commissioned works for ensembles, performed live and created audio-visual installations. She is a founder and artistic director of Aarhus Sound Association (Aarhus Lydforening), Project leader at ROSA and a lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus/Aalborg.
»Like all art, music is a language for emotions, dreams, and the search for meaning—but for us it is just as crucial that music is a path to community.«
Girls in Airports is a Danish instrumental band with a palette that draws in particular on jazz, electronic music, and sounds from distant horizons. Since their debut album in 2010, they have created a sonic universe in which saxophones, synths, and pulsating grooves meet in a collective and dreamlike expression. Recently, the band has focused on artistic collaborations with, among others, Teitur and Aarhus Jazz Orchestra, and they are now on their way with a new album created in collaboration with the string trio Halvcirkel.
