TING SOM TASLER

«Skumring» er akkordeonist Ida Løvli Hidles første soloalbum. Her har hun samlet verker av fire nordiske samtidskomponister: Svenske Staffan Mossenmark, norske Trygve Brøske, danske Jesper Koch og finske Kalevi Aho. Felles for komponistene er at de har latt seg inspirere av natur og mørke skoger der huldre og andre eventyrlige og mystiske vesener lusker mellom trærne.

Hva er det som skraper, piler, rasler og knirker? Er det bare bekken i det fjerne, vinden i trærne og våre egne skritt og pust vi hører? Eller er det noe annet der? Skyggene er ikke lenger det de gir seg ut for å være. Det lukter jord og våt skog. Tåke. Lufta kjennes kald og litt fuktig mot huden. Fuglene begynner å falle til ro. Eller gjør de det? Det er i dette øyeblikket virkeligheten svinner, og eventyrene tar over. Dette er skogsvesenets time. Det gjemmer seg i skyggene og følger med mens vi vandrer dypere inn i skogen. Her inne lever huldra med sitt lange, vakre hår og sine lokkende toner. Hun har lært mang en spellemann sitt huldrespel, men vi må passe på så vi ikke blir lokket helt inn i mørket. Se etter halen. I en lysning vokser det levende blomster. Her møter vi Alice. På sin vandring i Eventyrland møter hun Den Røde Dronningen som på finurlig vis blir til en sau som sitter inne i en mørk butikk der ingen ting er hva det gir seg ut for å være. Dypt inne i butikken havner hun i en bitter diskusjon med Lille Trille om hva som vil skje hvis han faller ned fra den smale hylla han sitter på. Fuglene i skogen observerer det hele fra avstand. De flyr mellom trærne og holder skogens eventyr under oppsyn. Dette er nattfuglenes rike. Til sola står opp og lysets fugler tar over.

Ida Løvli Hidle er en allsidig solist og kammermusiker. Hennes nærmest ubegrensede repertoar spenner fra samtidsmusikk til barokk, opera, jazz og folkemusikk. Som solist har hun spilt med bl.a. Ensemble Allegria, KORK og Det danske Ungdomsensemble, og hennes debutkonsert ved Det Kongelige Danske Musikkonservatorium (2016) ble sendt i sin helhet i DR P2. Hun har tidligere gitt ut plater med bl.a. Trondheim Jazzorkester, Susanna Wallumrød, Erlend Apneseth og Skadedyr. «Skumring» er hennes første soloutgivelse.

THINGS THAT LURK

“Skumring” (eng. Twilight) is accordionist Ida Løvli Hidle's debut solo album, where she has collected works by four Nordic contemporary composers: the Swede Staffan Mossenmark, Norwegian Trygve Brøske, Dane Jesper Koch, and the Finn Kalevi Aho. What all four composers have in common is their shared inspiration of nature, in particular dark forests where hulders and other enchanted and mysterious creatures lurk between the trees.

What is it that scratching, scurrying, rustling and creaking? Is it merely the stream in the distance, the wind in the trees and our own footsteps and breathing that we can hear? Or is there something else out here? The shadows are no longer what they are purporting to be. There’s the smell of earth and wet forest. Mist. The air feels cold and slightly damp against the skin. The birds are beginning to calm down. Or are they? It is at this moment that reality fades away, and the fairytales take over. This is the hour of the wood spirit. It lurks in the shadows and then observes us as we wander deeper into the forest. Here lives the ‘hulder’ with her long, beautiful hair and her beguiling tones. She has taught many a fiddler her songs, but we must also be careful not to be lured completely into the dark. Look for her tail. In a clearing there are live flowers growing. Here we meet Alice. On her walk in Wonderland, she meets the Red Queen who rather whimsically turns into a sheep sitting inside a dark shop where nothing is what it seems. Deep inside the shop, she ends up in an intense discussion with Humpty Dumpty about what would happen if he fell from the narrow shelf he is sitting on. The birds in the forest observe all this from a distance. They fly between the trees and keep an eye on the adventures of the forest. This is the kingdom of the night birds, until the sun rises and the birds of light take over.

Ida Løvli Hidle is a versatile soloist and chamber musician. Her virtually unlimited repertoire ranges from contemporary music to baroque, opera, jazz, and folk music. As a soloist she has performed with orchestras such as Ensemble Allegria, the Norwegian Radio Orchestra and the Danish National Youth Ensemble. Her debut concert at the Royal Danish Academy of Music (in 2016) was broadcast in its entirety on Danish radio station P2. She has appeared on several CD releases including those with the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, Susanna Wallumrød, Erlend Apneseth and Skadedyr. “Skumring” is her first solo release.

ANMELDELSER/REVIEWS

"Skumring (the Norwegian word for dusk or twilight) is the debut solo album from Ida Løvli Hidle. Her accordion-playing was one of the joys of Susanna (Wallumrød) & the Brotherhood of Our Lady's album Garden of Earthly Delights (2019). Here she absolutely shines as the only protagonist. The linking idea is that all of these contemporary composers, each from a different Nordic country, are inspired by their proximity to nature and all its darkness, mystery and enchantment. I thought that the best of that came towards the end of the album. The opening section of the last movement of Kalevi Aho's Second Sonata ("Mustat linnut"/ Black Birds) is wonderfully, eerily, overwhelmingly atmospheric. Perhaps best of all, however, are two pieces which draw their inspiration from a very different source. Danish composer Jesper Koch declares he has been "absorbed" by Lewis Carroll and the Alice books for many years. In both "The Garden of Live Flowers / The Red Queen" and "Wool and Water/Humpty Dumpty" Ida Løvli Hidle shows complete mastery of vivid story-telling, flow and variety in tone colour. In the latter piece, the red queen is transformed into knitting needles and then into oars, a story which elicits some truly magical playing from this very fine accordionist." Sebastian Scotney, theartsdesk.com, 28.01.2023