Eldbjørg Hemsing, Arctic Philharmonic - Arctic (CD Digi-Sleeve)

"The Sony Classical debut album "Arctic" by the internationally acclaimed Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing is a musical journey through the Arctic with new music by star composers Jacob Shea ("The Blue Planet") of Bleeding Fingers Music and Frode Fjellheim ("Frozen"). Together with the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra, Eldbjørg Hemsing celebrates the fragile and largely undiscovered beauty of an ecosystem that is threatened by climate change on an unprecedented scale. "The Arctic is often misunderstood as a harsh, uninhabitable place, but it is a region of unique beauty and full of life that illustrates in a fascinating way how everything is connected in fragile cycles. 'Arctic' is a musical journey through this unique, endangered natural area," explains Eldbjørg Hemsing. "With this project, I want to show people how magnificent and worth protecting this landscape is and to point out the threat of climate change, which affects us all." "Arctic" is full of stirring melodies and impressive orchestral soundscapes that build up as you listen to the album, like the breathtaking habitats of the Arctic throughout the seasons. For the musical design of her album, the musician, who was born in Valdres, Norway, worked with a variety of composers and created a unique album that combines American film music with European classical music. "Arctic" contains new music from film composers Jacob Shea of ​​Bleeding Fingers Music and Frode Fjellheim, as well as new arrangements of melodies by composers Selim Palmgren, Einojuhani Rautavaara, Henning Sommerro, Ola Gjeilo, Ole Bull, Edvard Grieg and James Newton Howard. The album was recorded in Bodø within the Norwegian Arctic Circle with the Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra. "I wanted to combine unique, memorable melodies with a picturesque orchestral sound that corresponds to the great panorama of the Arctic to tell this emotional story. The result is a very varied kind of film music for the concert hall or a soundtrack for an inner journey," says Eldbjørg Hemsing about the music of "Arctic". The central work of the album is the 20-minute long "Arctic Suite" by American film composer Jacob Shea of ​​Bleeding Fingers Music, who, together with Hans Zimmer, wrote the iconic music for "The Blue Planet" that has been played millions of times. In the six parts of the "Arctic Suite", Jacob Shea sets the unique Arctic natural phenomena to music and finds melodies for "Frozen Worlds" in winter, the "Aurora" in the polar night or the "Sunrise" at dawn on the polar day. He gives the schools of fish in the Malmström a sound in "Rush of Life" or the poetic whistling of the "Polar Winds" and ends with a melancholic look at current changes in "Sea Ice Melting". Composer Frode Fjellheim is known for his work on "Frozen". He comes from the Sami people, a people who have lived in the European Arctic Circle for centuries. For his compositions "Under the Arctic Moon" and "The Return of the Sun" he draws inspiration from the traditional Sami songs, the "Joik". In "The Return of the Sun" he even sings one of these traditional melodies. The musical journey through the "Arctic" includes other new and colorful orchestral arrangements of works by Nordic composers such as the sound-painting "Snowflakes" by Selim Palmgren, "Whispering" by Einojuhani Rautavaara, "Dawn" by Ola Gjeilo and "Vårsøg" by Henning Sommerro. "Vårsøg" is a well-known melody in Norway and stands for the "search for a new spring". The song, originally written as a folk-pop song, embodies the hope for a new beginning in life. Arranger Ben Palmer has embedded the melody in an emotional hymn for violin and orchestra. "A Hidden Life" by James Newton Howard has a metaphorical meaning for Eldbjørg Hemsing: "There is so much hidden life in the Arctic, for example under the ice in the sea. Large parts of it have not yet been explored at all and we can only guess at its importance for the global ecosystem." “Arctic” contains two traditional Norwegian classical works: “Last Spring” by Edvard Grieg and “La Melancolie” by Ole Bull. They represent the memory of a beautiful life in the Arctic that still exists today, but which in its current form will disappear forever due to climate change. “A unique concept album” (WAZ) “A soul journey through the Arctic Circle” (WDR3) 2 x 5 stars! “Well played and glamorously recorded” (BBC Music Magazine) "An album to daydream to. Eldbjørg Hemsing and the Arctic Philharmonic hit exactly the right note, the right line to paint this landscape with music to kneel down before nature. So simple and yet so versatile. So majestic and yet so fragile." (hr2 Kultur)"