Øyvind Torvund (born 1976 in
Porsgrunn) is a Norwegian composer.
He studied composition at the
Norwegian Academy of Music (Oslo) with Bjørn Kruse and Ivar Frounbergand, as well as at
Universität der Künste
The Universität der Künste Berlin (UdK; also known in English as the Berlin University of the Arts), situated in Berlin, Germany, is the largest art school in Europe. It is a public art and design school, and one of the four research unive ...
(Berlin) with
Friedrich Goldmann. Equally important is his background as a guitarist in rock and improvising groups. He has ongoing relationship with groups such as asamisimasa (Norway),
Oslo Sinfonietta and
Plus-Minus ensemble (UK), as well as the video artist Yorgos Sapountzis.
Torvund has been a composer in residence for Oslo Sinfonietta, written pieces for ensemble Ascolta, Ensemble Zwischentöne,
Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, Plus Minus ensemble and Yarn/Wire. His pieces have been performed in Donaueschinger Musiktage,
MaerzMusik, Ultraschall,
Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival, Transit festival, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Other Minds festival and at the Darmstadt International Ferienkurse.
Key Torvund works includes "Giants of Jazz" (sax, accordion, double bass). "How Sound Travels" (orchestra), the improvisation series "Bandrom", "Tune Park" (chamber ensemble), "Wolf Studies" (sextet), "Forest Construction" (chamber ensemble), "Krull Quest" (cello, electronics) and "The Stacks " (quartertone marimba or cello and elecronics).
Although some of Torvund's works, such as the
Nono and
Scelsi inspired orchestral piece ''How Sound Travels'' (2006), are easily located under the umbrella of
contemporary classical music
Contemporary classical music is classical music composed close to the present day. At the beginning of the 21st century, it commonly referred to the post-1945 modern forms of post-tonal music after the death of Anton Webern, and included seria ...
, many of his pieces combine sounds and concepts from other musical traditions. In ''Power Art'' (2006), for soprano, guitar and 2-stringed bass, the
bass instrument is built by the performer and the piece "is reminiscent of the musical feel of hardcore power trios like Black Flag, even if a song by
Henry Purcell
Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer.
Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest E ...
is the piece’s foundation."
In ''Album Cycle'' (2004) for 9 instruments, he "layers typical Baroque figures, the décor of garish 1980s pop, and stereotypical
free jazz riffs, resulting in a tableau of
musical ornamentation
In music, ornaments or embellishments are musical flourishes—typically, added notes—that are not essential to carry the overall line of the melody (or harmony), but serve instead to decorate or "ornament" that line (or harmony), provide added ...
crossing styles and eras, oscillating between the exalted and the banal."
Torvund has created many installations, most notably the Bandrom project - "a multi-disciplinary performance event with a polyphony of independent concerts, slide-shows, installations and music situations."
[http://bandrom.blogspot.com/ ] A Bandrom event may be realised on "one night or over several days, and in each version there is a new set-up that relates to the place and context."
The core musical idea is that musician's teach each other short solo pieces "by ear" and this teaching process is shown to the spectators, usually in an informal setting with food and drink.
Torvund has also held a number of positions in various organisations on the Norwegian music scene. He served as the editor of contemporary music publication Parergon from 2001-2002, artistic director for the Music Factory festival in Bergen, co-producer at the Borealis festival (2004-2008) and artistic director for nyMusikk (the Norwegian section of the
ISCM) from 2009 to 2011.
From 2007 to 2009, Torvund was selected as an entrant for the INTRO-composer launch programme, that was administered by MIC Music Information Centre Norway and
Concerts Norway. In 2012 Torvund received the
Arne Nordheim composer prize and in 2013 he was a DAAD-fellow in Berlin.
September 2017 saw Torvund being bestowed with the
Edvard Prize in the Contemporary category for his work ''Sweet Pieces''.
Production
Selected works
Orchestral works
* ''Archaic Jam for orchestra with electronics'' (2017)
* ''Sweet Pieces'' (2016)
* ''Idyllic Scenes'' (2015)
* ''How Sound Travels'' (2006)
* ''Solo Plans I'' (2015)
* ''Abstraction in Folk Art'' (2014)
* ''The Stacks'' (2007)
* ''Krull quest for cello and electronics'' (2004)
Chamber
* ''Wolf Studies'' (2006/2014)
* ''Untitled School/Mud Jam/Campfire Tunes'' (2014)
* ''Plastic Waves'' (2013)
* ''Willibald Motor Landscape'' (2012)
* ''Neon Forest Space'' (2009
Sinfonietta
''Forest Construction'' (2012)
Discography
* asamisimasa, ''Neon Forest Space - asamisimasa plays the music of Øyvind Torvund'' (2015)
* Bjørn Fongaard – ''Galaxe'' (2015)
* Kjell Tore Innervik, ''A Migrant in the New'' (2011)
* ''Concepts of Sorrows and dangers '' (2006)
* Tanja Orning, ''Cellotronics'' (2005)
*
HÃ¥kon Thelin
HÃ¥kon Thelin (born 1976 in Oslo) is a Norwegian double bass player and composer.
Thelin holds a master's degree (with a study on percussion techniques on the double bass in modern music, 2003) from the Norwegian Academy of Music. From 2007-2011, ...
, ''A P)reference to Other Things'' (2004)
* Poing, ''Giants of Jazz'' (2003)
* Circulasione Totale ''Orchestra, Borealis'' (1998)
References
External links
Ny MusikkOfficial Bandrom webpageMIC NORWAYList of WorksSOFA MUSIC
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torvund, Oyvind
Norwegian composers
Norwegian male composers
Living people
1976 births
Musicians from Porsgrunn