Yggdrasil is a Nordic

music ensemble A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, ...

based in the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

. The band was formed in 1981 by the composer and pianist

Kristian Blak Kristian Blak (born 31 March 1947), originally from Fredericia, Denmark, lives in the Faroe Islands where he is a composer, musician, and record executive. He is the founder of the Nordic musical ensemble Yggdrasil (named after the World tree ...

, who has written most of the material for the group. From the very beginning, Yggdrasil has included musicians from other countries, having varied musical backgrounds, mainly in jazz, but also in ethnic, folk, rock and classical music. Most of their works have been created in relation with other forms of art:

visual art The visual arts are art forms such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts and architecture. Many artistic disciplines such as performing arts, conceptual art, and textile arts ...

poetry Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings i ...

ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

- or in some cases, with nature (concertos in sea caves). The compositions draw ideas and themes from ethnic material from the North Atlantic region, such as Faroese ballads, hymns and rhymes,

Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...

songs or

Shetland Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

folk music.

Improvisation Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...

takes a large part in the interpretation and ranges from

free Free may refer to: Concept * Freedom, having the ability to do something, without having to obey anyone/anything * Freethought, a position that beliefs should be formed only on the basis of logic, reason, and empiricism * Emancipate, to procur ...

and ethno-jazz to classical and world music. The band is named after the

world tree The world tree is a motif present in several religions and mythologies, particularly Indo-European religions, Siberian religions, and Native American religions. The world tree is represented as a colossal tree which supports the heavens, thereb ...

Yggdrasil Yggdrasil (from Old Norse ), in Norse cosmology, is an immense and central sacred tree. Around it exists all else, including the Nine Worlds. Yggdrasil is attested in the ''Poetic Edda'' compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional s ...

Norse mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...

Band members

Past and current members include * Anders Hagberg, flute and saxophone * Anders Jormin, bass * Angelika Niesen, violin * Brandur Jacobsen, drums * Eivør Pálsdóttir, vocals * Ernst Dalsgard, flute * Heðin Ziska Davidsen, guitar * John Tchicai, saxophone * Kári Sverisson, vocals * Karin Korpelainen - drums *

, piano * Lelle Kullgren, guitar * Mia Káradóttir, flute * Mikael Blak, bass * Ólavur Øster, guitar * Rasmus Lyberth, vocal * Tore Brunborg, saxophone * Villu Veski, saxophone

Discography

* ''Den Yderste Ø'' (HJF 12,

Tutl TUTL Records is a record label of the Faroe Islands that was founded in 1977 by Kristian Blak. The label is credited with giving many Faroese musicians their first break and "has played a major role in giving musicians a chance to record and publ ...

1981) - poems by

William Heinesen Andreas William Heinesen (15 January 1900 – 12 March 1991) was a poet, novel writer, short story writer, children's book writer, composer and painter from the Faroe Islands. His writing The Faroese capital Tórshavn is always the centre of H ...

* ''Ravnating'' (HJF 13, Tutl 1982) - dia show by Philippe Carré * ''Heygar og Dreygar'' - folk belief of the Faroe Islands, paper collages from William Heinesen /
The Four Towers ballet based on the poem "Barnetegning" by William Heinesen (HJF 15/19, Tutl 1985) * ''Concerto Grotto'' - with Faroese nature as a musical partner /
Drangar - music written to the "sculpture" in Faroese nature (HJF 33, Tutl 1984 / 1993) * ''Brøytingar'' (HJF 21, Tutl 1988) - concept and artworks by Ole Wich * ''Yggdrasil'' (HJF 88, Tutl 2002) - featuring Eivør Pálsdóttir * ''Live in Rudolstadt'' (HJF 99, Tutl 2004) - featuring Eivør Pálsdóttir (live recording from the 2003 TFF Rudolstadt) * ''The Tübingen Concert'' (2 DVD, HJF 122DVD, Tutl 2005) - live recording at the University Hospital Tübingen (

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

) * ''Risastova'' (HJF 111, Tutl 2006 ) - featuring Kári Sverrisson, as well as the suite "Vágatunnilin" (Tunnel Music) * ''Askur'' (2 CD, HJF 133, Tutl 2007) - live recordings 1982-2006 * ''Grót & Vatn'' (HJF 233, Tutl 2012) - live recording at The Nordic House

Tórshavn Tórshavn (; lit. "Thor's harbour"), usually locally referred to as simply ''Havn'', is the capital and largest city of the Faroe Islands. It is located in the southern part on the east coast of Streymoy. To the northwest of the city lies the ...

(

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References

External links

Kristian Blak personal site
Faroese folk musical groups Musical groups established in 1981 Norse mythology in music {{Denmark-band-stub