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Norges musikkhøgskole Norwegian Academy of Music Search

Tra­di­tion­al Folk Music Instru­ment

  • Course level: Bachelor/Master.
  • Year of study: Two semesters, fall and spring.
  • Final assessment: Continuous assessment.
  • Prerequisites: The 20-variant is a prerequisite for the 21-variant.
  • Language of instruction: Norwegian or English.

Course description

The course provides tuition on a traditional Norwegian folk music instrument: lure, buckhorn, Jew's harp or folk flutes (sea flute/willow flute). Lure and buckhorn are for brass-players only.

The applicants must state which traditional Norwegian folk music instrument they wish to learn in answer to the e-mail which will be sent after the application deadline.

Note: The response deadline to the e-mail will be very short, so the applicants must check their NMH e-mail regularly.

Course coordinator: Steinar Ofsdal

Learning objectives

Upon completion of the course, students are expected to

  • have an understanding of the instrument's characteristics
  • master playing technique(s)
  • have knowledge of relevant repertoire and performance practices
  • have insight into how the instrument can be used in more recent musical styles

Overview

The student will learn how to play the instrument, and the uses in traditional folk music. Depending on the student's prerequisites and interests, the instrument's uses in more recent musical styles can be explored.

Relevant topics:

  • Aural playing.
  • Score playing.
  • Fiddle and song tunes from various traditions.
  • Tonality.
  • Asymmetric bars in 3.

Structure

Tuition is mainly individual, 22,5 minutes a week for 24 weeks. The students must provide an instrument themselves.

Course requirements

At the end of the academic year, the student must present a curriculum/repertoire list corresponding to 20-30 minutes which covers all the areas included in the course. The amount of repertoire is adapted to the student's prerequisites. The curriculum/repertoire list must be approved by the course teacher.

Final assessment

All coursework requirements must be approved prior to obtaining a final assessment.

Students are assessed in correspondence to the learning outcomes of the course. The final assessment is expressed with the grades pass/fail, and set by the course teacher on the basis of a continuous assessment of the student’s skills throughout the course period.

New assessment

Students who do not pass the course must attend the course in its entirety again.

Published: May 19, 2020 — Last updated: Jun 24, 2024