A quiet explosion of feelgood music making Solistic Hardanger fiddle in the centre of a big jazz ensemble

Contributing to this feelgood music we have the renowned and versatile Trondheim Jazz Orchestra. The project is based on enlarging the richness of details in the solistic Hardanger fiddle tradition, which traditionally has been the most usual way to use the instrument. The big ensemble works as a magnifying glass where they search for the details, mixing them up, throwing them around, and evaluating. With Olav and the Hardanger fiddle in the centre.

Alongside Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, Alexander Zethson and Lene Grenager is a part of the team, and have arranged several tunes. The rest is arranged by Sofia herself.

The album was recorded in 2014, and the ensemble has done several concerts together. The project premiered at Vozzjazz in 2012, they played at Riksscenen and Umeå Jazz festival in 2013, and later played at Stockholm Jazz Festival in 2014.

Released on Heilo (Grappa) credits released November 29, 2019

Recorded by Jan Erik Kongshaug at Rainbow Studios, Oslo December 21st 2014 Mixed by Ingar Hunskaar Mastered by Fridtjof Lindeman, Strype Audio

The unique artist edition of Andvake! Colour: Iceberg Release Date: 13.06.2025 on By Norse. If darkness is the canvas upon which the boldest visions are painted, then Andvake—meaning "Awakened Soul" in Old Norse—marks Afargang’s arrival with a vivid and unrelenting creation. At the heart of Afargang is Olav Luksengård Mjelva, the band’s architect and guiding force. A musician whose soul resonates with the echoes of Norway’s past, his mastery of folk music and particularly the Hardanger fiddle, injects a spectral quality into the band’s sonic framework. This is not folk metal as the world has known it, nor is it a simple modernization of ancient sounds. It is a force unto itself, reaching into the marrow of Nordic tradition and twisting it into something new, something untamed. Tracklist "Andvake" 1. Mot Verda (06:00) 2. Kvile (05:24) 3. Andvake (06:14) 4. Leika (07:17) 5. Sjå det blånar (05:00) 6. Leva og døy (06:14) 7. I di eining (05:21) 8. Kom ned (06:11) Total: 49:48

From the foreword:

We met for the first time in the autumn of 2011 with an idea. Two instruments with a short geographical distance between them, but still very rare to hear them played together, would now come together in a cellar in Stockholm.

We soon found out that there were natural reasons behind the instruments’ rare meetings. The repertoire is quite different but it’s also about the keys, rhythmic differences, ornamentation and so much more. We chose to go the hard way in following traditional playing styles, pace and rhythm. We wanted to add a new dimension to the music, without removing the many qualities that had already existed before, and we would, amongst other things, try to play the hardanger fiddle music as if they were played by a solo player. One solution was to give each other signs as we played the tunes instead of making solid arrangement ideas. Erik was so disciplined in learning the Hallingdal style that he slept with springar’s and halling’s in his head for the whole of the spring. Olav also learned new fingering techniques for the fiddle whilst trying the hardanger in different keys. It has always been important for us to let our own personalities and musical thoughts get space in the music. Therefore, it is perhaps not so strange that this album, the last in the triology, consists largely of our own compositions.

The result, we think, is harmonious, an embracing soundscape. The sound of 25 strings in interaction and harmony, with an underlying, addictive intensity and energy. We have always been very open to each others ideas and let each other have the room to play. Neither of us can remember anytime where any of us have had an idea that has not been approved or allowed.

It has been an evolving and educational journey that we will take with us for the rest of our lives. A huge thank you to all of you who have given us encouraging words and to those who have had faith in this project.

All the best Erik and Olav

1. Klunkelåtten (Trad. Hallingdal)

2. Jubileumspolska (Erik Rydvall)

3. Skripalåtten (Trad. Hallingdal)

4. Kaffemonstret (Erik Rydvall)

5. Vårvindar Friska (Trad. Härjedalen)

6. Rande-Ambjør (Trad. Hallingdal)

7. Vals till Ros (Erik Rydvall)

8. Högtidsmarsch (Erik Rydvall)

9. Asle Myro (Trad. Hallingdal)

10. Dorgaren (Olav L. Mjelva)

11. Vals etter Tor Grimsgard (Trad. Hallingdal)

12. Storsvarten (Trad. Etter Byss-Calle)

13. Stout´s Waltz (Olav L. Mjelva)

Mjelva/West is a collaboration between Norwegian fiddler Olav Mjelva and American guitarist/singer Eli West. Each takes equal interest in the other’s traditions, while leaving room for another newer tradition: the new sounds of collaboration.

Olav writes tunes without need for excess. Each note has a clarity and purpose, withholding the desire to overstate. Eli writes songs that are the lyrical equivalent. «Both are out to prove nothing but the worth of a single note, delivered with a grounding in craft» as a critic recently wrote.

Some fantastic tunes from Härjedalen, Sweden, featuring Anders Thunell (fiddle, viola), Olav L. Mjelva (fiddle, viola, double bass), Lasse Sörlin (fiddle, guitars), and Göran Månsson (flutes). One late winter’s day in the early 1990s, Anders Thunell walked—just as he had many times before—with his relatives down the road toward the church and the heritage center in Linsell, Härjedalen. This time they were going to see the storytelling performance “Fjället, Skogen & Myren” (“The Mountain, the Forest & the Marsh”), originally written around 1908 by author Valdemar Lindholm from Borgsjö parish in Medelpad, with actor Rolf Lassgård in one of the roles and directed by Peter Oskarsson. The performance featured musicians Lasse Sörlin, Greger Brändström, and Ellika Frisell — and it became Anders’ very first encounter with spelman music, a tradition he has loved ever since. Thirty years later, he is sitting together with Lasse, Olav, and Göran in a snow-covered cabin high in the mountains at Vemdalsskalet. Surrounded by warmth and the joy of playing, the idea to record a new album with tunes from Härjedalen begins to take shape. Two months later, the first mixes are ready in a studio in Røros. Musicians: Anders Thunell – fiddle, viola Olav Luksengård Mjelva (Norway) – fiddle, viola, double bass Lasse Sörlin – fiddle, viola, guitar Göran Månsson – flutes, contrabass recorder

Traditional Norwegian fiddle music from Hallingdal and Røros on fiddle and hardanger fiddle. This album won the Norwegian «Spellemannprisen» in 2010. (The Norwegian equivalent of a Grammy award).