Aurora Records is pleased to present Magne Hegdal’s masterpiece Ara et Vita. Magne Hegdal is one of the leading Norwegian composers of his generation. He has never pushed himself forward, but instead, throughout a long career has produced a rich, voluminous oeuvre. Much of this is composed for his own instrument, the piano. In 2019 he completed the monumental Ars et vita, the crowning glory of this life’s work. By his own account, his work as a composer is now done, and this piece will come to stand as his musical legacy.

The composition consists of a total of 22 movements and lasts approximately one hour and 45 minutes. It is written for three pianists who alternate between playing solo, four-hands and six-hands. In the final movement, works are quoted from each of the years that Hegdal has spent as an active composer, between 1955 and 2019, called CV in the score. The cycle includes other autobiographical elements, backward looks at earlier works, and motifs from classical pieces that his older sister used to practise, all of these frequently put together according to chance operations summed up as ‘Memories, Experiences and Dreamt Waltzes’, as the subtitle puts it. In this way, Ars et vita becomes an overarching narrative of Hegdal’s life and development as a composer.

The work’s 22 movements reflect not only a rich and eclectic artistic oeuvre, but also serve as a reflection of an entire life.