TUNE Intensive Week in Rauland, Norway
From February 13 to 17, over 50 traditional music students and teachers from five European countries gathered in the mountain village of Rauland, Norway for the third intensive week of the TUNE (Traditional Music Undergraduate Network in Europe) project.
The intensive week was hosted by the Department of Traditional Arts and Traditional Music at the University of South-Eastern Norway and welcomed students, teachers, and administrative staff from the following partner institutions: University of Tartu Viljandi Culture Academy (Estonia), Pôle Aliénor (France), University of Ioannina (Greece), Conservatorio Superior de Música de Vigo (Spain), and the AEC (Association of European Conservatoires).
During the intensive week in Rauland, students worked together in small and large ensembles, exchanging traditional instrumental and vocal repertoire from their home countries which they arranged and performed at a public concert at the Rauland International Winter Festival on February 17. They also participated in music workshops, and outdoor activities, and took a snowmobile ride on Lake Møsvatn to attend a special concert by local folk musicians.
Intensive weeks are a key component of the TUNE project, which aims to develop an innovative joint European undergraduate module in traditional music based on a combination of physical and digital learning strategies. Each intensive week provides the opportunity for bachelor-level traditional music students to participate in workshops, ensemble work, performances, and social activities.
Laura Ellestad, the coordinator of the TUNE project and lecturer at USN campus Rauland, affirms that participating in the intensive week provides students with a unique opportunity to enrich their musical practice and broaden their worldview: “Our experience so far in the TUNE project has shown that students deeply value the intensive week experience. Through working in small ensembles with musicians from different countries, students have commented that they learned more during one week about music-making, arranging, stylistic interpretation, and collaboration than what they have learned over several months of regular course work.”
The next TUNE intensive week will be hosted by Conservatorio Superior de Música de Vigo from 16 to 20 October 2023.
Visit the TUNE project website and social media pages to stay updated about the latest news and learn more about the traditional music and culture of each partner country: France, Norway, Estonia, Spain (Galicia) and Greece.
Follow TUNE on Facebook and Instagram.
Photo Credit: ©Margit Rønning Omholt
