The Traena Music Festival ({{langx, no, Trænafestivalen) is held annually in

Træna Municipality Træna is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the island/village of ...

Nordland Nordland (; , , , ) is one of the three northernmost Counties of Norway, counties in Norway in the Northern Norway region, bordering Troms in the north, Trøndelag in the south, Norrbotten County in Sweden to the east, Västerbotten County to t ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The festival is held on the islands of

Husøya Husøya is a small island and the administrative centre of Træna Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located just east of the island of Sanna in the Trænfjorden, about northwest of the island of Lovund (in neighboring Lurøy Muni ...

and Sanna. The islands are only accessible by

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

boat from the mainland in neighboring

Lurøy Municipality Lurøy is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Nordland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Helgeland Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is located on the island ...

Venues A venue is the location at which an event takes place. It may refer to: Locations * Venue (law), the place a case is heard * Financial trading venue, a place or system where financial transactions can occur * Music venue, place used for a conce ...

have included an ancient cave, a church with blacked-out windows (to block out the

Midnight sun Midnight sun, also known as polar day, is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When midnight sun is see ...

which shines for 23 hours a day), and tents. The festival attracts many people from neighbouring communities who visit the camp to enjoy the music and unique nature of the festival.

History

Nine thousand years ago, some pioneers migrated to these islands out in the

Norwegian Sea The Norwegian Sea (; ; ) is a marginal sea, grouped with either the Atlantic Ocean or the Arctic Ocean, northwest of Norway between the North Sea and the Greenland Sea, adjoining the Barents Sea to the northeast. In the southwest, it is separate ...

. There was not much land that could be farmed nor many trees that could be felled, but the richness of the surrounding ocean made it possible for people to settle. Even today, this is one of the richest

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

grounds in Norway. Over the centuries that followed, the ocean richness has supported the small population of 400 people; these residents became important trading partners in the international fish market. Most of what comes out of the ocean is exported. This also means that this isolated island always has been a highly international place. This international music festival celebrates the history and culture of

by bringing new Norwegian "fresh" musical expression into the open in different

genres Genre () is any style or form of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other form ...

References

Trænafestivalen home page
*http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/4138714.stm *http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/features/Fest-in-peace.4301574.jp http://www.cloud-mine.nl/2015/08/17/tr%C3%A6nafestivalen-2015/ http://www.cloud-mine.nl/2013/07/13/tr%C3%A6na-the-sound-of-the-arctic-circle/ *http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/jul/21/norway.festivals?page=all

External links

YouTube movie
about the festival made by Kelly King and Olaf Furniss in 2008 Music festivals in Norway Træna Folk festivals in Norway