Ready for Troldhaugen

Update 11 March 2021: Christian Ihle Hadland replaces pianist Marianna Shirinyan, who was previously announced as the pianist at the concert in Troldsalen Thursday 27 May. The programme remains unchanged.

The programme for the 2021 Bergen International Festival is coming together. Earlier this fall the opening performance with Taylor Mac, who was recently awarded The International Ibsen Award, launched.

Now three concerts at Troldhaugen are ready: Pianist Ingrid Andsnes will perform at Grieg's Villa on Friday 4 and Saturday 5 June. Pianist Marianna Shirinyan is playing in the onsite concert hall Troldsalen Thursday 27 May, and last year's winner of the Norwegian Soloist Prize, violinist Johan Dalene is playing together with pianist Christian Ihle Hadland at the same venue Saturday 5 June.

In Grieg's own living room Ingrid Andsnes, who is also a consumate communicator, will perform a programme she has divided into three parts: Step, Sway and Spin. The programme is inspired by movement and rythmics, and includes a commissioned work by the Norwegian composer Erlend Skomsvoll entitled Step Sway Spin. The concert also contains works by Grieg, Stravinsky, Bach and Ligeti, plus A Map of Laughter by Missy Mazzoli, who is the 2021 Festival composer and Artist in Residence.

Marianna Shirinyan and Johan Dalene where among the original programme for the 2020 Bergen International Festival, and had to see their concerts cancelled. They will both be returning to Bergen and Troldhaugen, with new lists of works on the programme. 

Armenian-Danish pianist Marianna Shirinyan is known for her sensitive playing style and smooth technique. At the Bergen International Festival, she has among other things previously performed as a soloist at Grieg's Piano Concerto in A minor. In Troldsalen she will be performing The People United Will Never Be Defeated by the American composer Frederic Rzewski.

Swedish-Norwegian Johan Dalene was awarded the Norwegian Soloist Prize in 2019. The international jury praised the then 19-year-old violinist's suberb playing and charisma, and a recital at the Bergen Internation Festival is part of the prize.

'A fantastic feeling, and a great honour to win,' responded Johan Dalene when he was awarded the prize at a concert with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra. (See Johan Dalene perform Max Bruch's violin concerto together with the Bergen phil here.)

Despite his youth Johan Dalene is well on his way to a major international career, with recent or imminent debuts at Wigmore Hall in London and Carnegie Hall in New York. He is in the BBCs New Generation Artists programme and the Norwegian mentoring programme Crescendo, and will be making his third appearance in the Bergen International Festival. A new record with the acclaimed Norwegian pianist Christian Ihle Hadland is around the corner, and at this concert, they will be performing works by Sinding, Auerbach, Ravel, Roumain and Waxmann.

Events planned for the 2021 Bergen International Festival will be launched throughout the autumn and winter.

It is likely that plans for the 2021 Bergen International Festival will be affected by the pandemic. By launching performances and artists as they are confirmed, the Festival would like to draw attention to the work our wonderful artists do, while knowing that the final festival programme may look different. The festival will follow the health authorities’ orders and recommendations, and wants to create safe conditions and the least possible inconvenience to our audience. Therefore, ticket sales will not start until the spring.