For over 20 years, TONO has honored Norwegian composers and lyricists with its EDVARD Prize. Here are the 15 nominees in 2020's five categories.
/ 02/07/2020 / Kristian DugstadHere are the nominees for the 2020 EDVARD Prize.
Hanne Hukkelberg – Birthmark (Album)
Pom Poko – Birthday (Album)
SIBERIA – Ropes (Album)
Ellen Lindquist – The Sacredness of Trees (Work)
Helge Iberg – Songs from the Planet of Life (Album)
Therese Birkelund Ulvo – In the Cage (Work)
Bridge - DO YOU SEE THE FALLING LEAVES? (Album)
Bugge Wesseltoft and Harald Tusberg Jr. – Communichaos (Album)
Hedvig Mollestad – Echidna (Album)
Forgetful – Love Life Fantastic (Album)
Mira Thiruchelvam (9 degrees north) – Jaffna (Album)
Tine Surel Lange – Arctic Creatures: Repparfjord (Work)
Arif Salum (Arif) – Arif in Waanderland (Album)
Regina Tucker (Myra) – Homeless in my own city (Song)
Sverre Knudsen – LIT (Album)
NOTE: In cases where nominated works are composed by bands together, band names are used here for simplicity.
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"I am incredibly touched to be nominated for such an important award. In such a special time, it is extra warm as well."
(Photo: Mike Ray Vera Cruz Angeles)
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"It's really great to be nominated for the Edvard Prize. You can often get the feeling that composing is something a composer does on their own in deep concentration, but for us it's a thoroughly collective thing that depends on everyone in the band contributing their part. There's a bit of awe in the picture when we look back at past winners and nominees, which is why we really appreciate the nomination."
(Photo: Jørgen Nordby)
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"In Sibiir, everyone is very involved in the songwriting, and we don't give up until the whole band is satisfied. We are very happy with "Ropes", and proud of what we achieved. It is of course very nice when others recognize our work, and being nominated for the Edvard Prize is something we value very highly and are very grateful for."
(Photo: Johnny Vaet Nordskog)
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"It is an incredibly great honor to be nominated for this year's EDVARD Prize in the Contemporary category. The Sacredness of Trees was commissioned by Nordic Music Days 2019 in Bodø, with the "small" festival theme TRUTH as the compass direction. The work is built on the overtones found in the deepest bell in Bodø Cathedral's carillon, and The Sacredness of Trees has grown to become a cry to respect and protect the world's oldest forests that are rapidly disappearing. I wrote The Sacredness of Trees in collaboration with the eminent carillonneur Vegar Sandholt, who premiered the work."
(Photo: Elise Maalø)
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"So nice to be nominated for the Edvard Prize for "Songs from the planet of life"! A comprehensive piece of music that has required several years of (free) work and a lot of effort to realize."
This is the third EDVARD nomination. Many thanks to the conductor, soloists, musicians and everyone else who has contributed to the recording of the work. The Edvard Prize is highly regarded, and it is an important recognition for all serious music creators.»
(Photo: Torgny Skogsrud)
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"In the Cage" is the conclusion of a larger project and thought process that I worked on in 2017, 2018 and 2019. Incredibly nice to be nominated for this particular work. A big thank you to the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra for giving me the opportunity!"
(Photo: Andreas Ulvo)
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«Every song on the album is about completely human things. About the search for love, art, peace, tranquility, about heartbreak, about loss, about how society and capitalism shape us, about how history repeats itself without us fully seeing it or being able to do anything about it. About how we sometimes live in our own bubble. About how we look up at the sky and at the nature around us, and we recognize ourselves in it. We are very happy to be nominated for this award, is there anything more rewarding than a creative award? Thank you very much.
(Photo: Julia Reinhard)
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"It is a wonderful recognition to be nominated for the EDVARD Prize, to be encouraged for one's work. And it is more important than ever to have good ways to highlight the work of composers, songwriters, and lyricists, not least in a pandemic time when we have major physical obstacles in reaching our audience, and in a time when the state of the climate has required that we change the way we have previously reached the audience."
(Photo: Julia Nagelstad)
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"Such a decent and wonderful feeling. Nominated for the unattainable prize. Music's own St. Olavs Medal. Edvard rules. We feel incredibly privileged and the gratitude is great. Thank you very much."
(Photo: Petter Stene)
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"Love Life Fantastically" is a topical existentialist rock drama with life itself and its strongest ingredient, love, as the leitmotif. The cover is a still life with the color of hope, light green, as a background. A white flag for inviolability. A heart of gold. An eagle. Open handcuffs. Roses. A fake mushroom and an anchor. Very cool to be nominated for the Edvard Prize."
(Photo: Per Heimly)
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"It feels great to experience being seen. Then you are included and recognized. When people listen to the music, I hope that it will find a place in the music landscape in Norway. For my part, I am happy that we can help modernize the Norwegian musical expression."
(Photo: Dipha Thiruchelvam)
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"It's really cool to be nominated for an Edvard, and being nominated as "challenger of the year" suits me well. I don't stick to the lines, neither in terms of genre, art form nor expression. It's idea, concept and context that guide the forces and my works are marked by the fact that I am neither a "typical" contemporary composer, sound artist nor visual artist. I'm now doing my thing, and it's incredibly nice that others appreciate my work."
(Photo: Tine Surel Lange)
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"It's an honor to be nominated as a lyricist from talented people who work with all genres every day at TONO. Thank you very much!"
(Photo: Gitte Paulsbo / Nora Creatives.)
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"Homeless in my own city" is a song that is very close to me and a song where I try to put into words my difficulties with belonging and other complexes I have had in childhood based on skin, hair and ethnicity. Being able to share a little of my inner life in this song and somehow be understood feels very good. And I am so incredibly happy about this nomination, it means a lot to me."
(Photo: Tyra Lartey)
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"It is a surprise and an honor to be nominated for this award for someone who has worked with lyrics and music a little off the beaten track all his life. Whether this means the world has become more like me, or I who have become more like the world, I am unsure, but it is gratifying either way!"
(Photo: Frode Fjerdingstad)