Isbrytaren offers an unusual and inspired duo collaboration between folk musicians, one Swedish and one Norwegian. Erik Rydvall on keyed fiddle and Olav Luksengård Mjelva on Hardanger fiddle are both among the foremost folk musicians of their generation. Two inquisitive musicians with solid roots in their own traditions.

The Hardanger fiddle and keyed fiddle have rarely been played together in a duo format. The repertoires and performance styles of these two instruments are fundamentally very different, but these two young musicians manage to make the combination sound both natural and intriguing. Now, after presenting a number of tremendously successful concerts, the duo are finally ready to present their first album.

Isbrytaren

Isbrytaren was recorded in Ål Church in Hallingdal together with technician Tor Magne Hallibakken. Olav L. Mjelva was already familiar with this space and its superb acoustics. "It was very inspiring to have the opportunity to sit on our own, each with our own instrument, in an impressive church with a fantastic resonance," Mjelva and Rydvall write in their cover notes. They play their own arrangements of traditional Swedish and Norwegian material on the record in addition to a few of their own compositions. The music is evocative, catchy and danceable, and their collaboration really makes the sparks fly.