Bjørn Hoemsnes - Biography
Bjørn Norvall Korsan Hoemsnes (1954) was born in Molde and educated as a pianist at the Norwegian State Academy of Music during 1975-77. He received a degree in composition from the Richard Strauss Conservatory in Munich, where he studied during 1977-79. In 1980, he studied with Finn Mortensen at the Norwegian State Academy of Music, and later worked as a teacher in piano and music theory.
During the period of 1980-82 he served as a member of the Program Committee for Ny Musikk, The Norwegian section of the ISCM. During 1986-89 he served on the Grant and Media Committee for the Norwegian Artists' Council. Hoemsnes became the head master of Rømskog music- and cultural school in 1998.
Hoemsnes' compositions from 1973-2000 span a large range of styles, from melodic divertimenti in pure function-harmonic style (Strike up the waltz, 1918 ouverture) to 'hard' avant-garde in free dodecaphonic form of expression. (Farvel til musikken). The composition Opus Partus, 1985 (ISCM World Music Days, Oslo 1990) represents the core of these extremes and serves as an indicator of Hoemsnes' 'own' personal musical language of form. Hundreds of unpublished compositions from the 1990’ies bear the stamp of an orientation towards French Impressionism, European Baroque and Late Romanticism, American jazz clusters and Norwegian folk music. Hoemsnes strives a polyfone complexity, but also simplicity in his musical-religious yearning.
In 1978 he received First Prize in a composition competition for the Norwegian Band Federation for the 1918 Ouverture. Since 2006 Hoemsnes has had a number of works performed at the festivals VinterRiss and HøstRiss in the county of Østfold, where he shall also be the composer-in-residence in 2012.
Headlines:
Himmelkvad
Celebrated vocal ensemble Nordic Voices is currently out on its promo tour for their new outing ‘Himmelkvad’, a critically acclaimed album presenting Norwegian composer Lasse Thoresen’s unique vocal universe. MIC Norway takes a closer look at the cutting-edge vocal ensemble and ground-breaking composer.
I was the devil in my younger years
Late Feb sees Enslaved heading out on a month-long European tour. MIC Norway hooked up with Enslaved’s Ivar Peersen to talk about musical cross pollination, inspirational sources, humour and his fascination for singer-songwriter Stein Torleif Bjella.
