Welcome to Oslo International Church Music Festival 2025
Dear audience,
Welcome to our 25th anniversary. Little did we know, back then, that we would become a large international festival with room for new and old church music for everyone, regardless of faith, age, and church affiliation. For our anniversary year, the theme of the festival is Masses and Passions in step with the times. With this, we want to shed light on exciting musical tendencies within church music, while also, in step with the times, present cost-efficient programmes with fewer visiting ensembles, which will reduce our climate footprint.
Opening the festival, we have the ensemble Continuum under the direction of the award-winning harpsichordist Elina Albach. She has specialized in making modern miniature condensations, this time J.S. Bach’s Mass in B minor: Missa Miniatura for 13 musicians. Alongside Albach, we find the excellent Icelandic tenor Benedikt Kristjánsson. Together they will also perform St John Passion by J.S. Bach in a trio version, with Oslo Cathedral Youth Choir singing the chorales in keeping with traditional performance practice, sitting in the audience – who is also invited to participate.
Pärt and Palestrina
Closing the festival, we have the world-renowned English choir The Sixteen under the direction of Harry Christophers. The choir will perform a beautiful a cappella-programme with music by Palestrina (500 years), John Taverner, Hildegard von Bingen, James MacMillan, and the 90-year-old Arvo Pärt.
We will hear even more Pärt when his Estonian favourite choir and long-term collaboration partner Vox Clamantis and conductor Jaan-Eik Tulve bring us their world-leading rendition of Pärt under the heading ‘Da pacem Domine.’ The choir will also perform music by our very own Henrik Ødegaard.
Trio Mediæval brings new life to medieval motets and mass movements when they adapt the repertoire to a trio of female voices accompanied by Chilean Catalina Vicens on organetto. Our beloved Soloist Choir celebrates 75 years and 35 years with Grete Pedersen as their artistic director. Pedersen is entering her last season with the choir. It cannot be emphasized enough how important Grete Pedersen’s work has been for Norwegian musical life. We will hear Grieg’s Four Psalms and works from Monteverdi’s Selva morale e spirituale, as well as the world premiere of Rolf Wallin’s Utopian Folk Songs.
Children and youth and premieres
As always, children and youth are a big part of the festival. Oslo Cathedral Boys Choir turns 40, and for the occasion, we have invited the German boys’ choir Staats-und Domchor Berlin. Together, the two choirs will perform the premiere of a new choral work, Dona Nobis Pacem, ‘Grant us peace.’ The piece is written by Marcus Paus and commissioned by the festival. The two choirs will also perform their own concerts. The choir school at Uranienborg Church celebrates their 5-year anniversary and will perform the premiere of a work by Marianne Reidarsdatter Eriksen, commissioned by the choir school and the festival. We will once again welcome the great Gothenburg Cathedral Girls Choir under the direction of Petter Ekberg. There will be a masterclass at the Norwegian Academy of Music for choral conducting students with the world-known conductor Paul Hillier, and the organ students will enjoy a masterclass with the star organist Isabelle Demers.
Bent Sørensen is one of our greatest contemporary composers and has previously written a critically acclaimed St Matthew Passion commissioned by the festival. This time, Sørensen has written St John Passion. In keeping with our theme, he will write a work for two seasons, the first part has its premiere this year, while part two is planned for the festival in 2026. The world premiere will be performed by five singers from Theatre of Voices and five string players from Ensemble Allegria, conducted by Paul Hillier.
Exciting ensembles and beautiful music
Italian Il Pomo d’Oro is bringing Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater in its original chamber music form for strings, basso continuo, and two vocal soloists: soprano Mélissa Petit and mezzo-soprano Ann Hallenberg.
Ârgha/nūn provides an exciting musical and poetic meeting between Persian and European culture. The ensemble is under the direction of Mostafa Taleb, who previously attended the festival in Jordi Savall’s refugee project Orpheus 21. This time, we will hear a unique musical language that mixes Western Baroque music and Persian melodies. Taleb and his French collaboration partners’ artistry demonstrate the transgressive qualities of music, with today’s refugee situation as a backdrop.
Organ
The recent closure of study programs for organ students worries all of us working with church music. We have therefore given a prominent place to outstanding organists in this year’s festival. Canadian Isabelle Demers is a real ‘organ rock star’ and has garnered great acclaim all over the world. The Swedish Margareta Church, Margaretakyrkan, turns 100 years, and organist Per Anders Håvelsrud will give us highlights from Scandinavian organ literature. Ulf Nilsen will play around with themes by Bach in Nordstrand Church, while Lars Notto Birkeland welcomes us to concert at Akershus Castle Church’s new Weimbs Orgelbau organ. Birkeland marks the Pärt anniversary with Pärt’s work Trivium, and will otherwise perform a versatile programme. This will be a unique opportunity to experience both historic gems and innovative music at the Castle Church’s fantastic new organ.
The Boysen Bus with Espen Melbø and Olav Rune Bastrup will this time roll towards organ treasures in Asker and Bærum. As always, there will be festival church services all over the city and interesting concert introductions.
Dona Nobis Pacem
Welcome to our 25th anniversary!
Bente Johnsrud, October 2024
Festival and artistic director
