Grieg – Ballade, Tveitt – Hundrad Hardingtonar

This is the first recording of the new organ in Stavanger Conserthall, Norway.

In the days of yore, orchestral music was transcribed for the organ or piano to reach a wider audience. Now the situation is different: We have access to most works in the form of recordings. So just why are we still attracted to the creation of new versions? Perhaps it’s because we don’t like the idea of a final edition of a work. Perhaps it’s an illusion that we can experience the music as it was originally intended. Perhaps we think that to find the true work, we still need to search for it. Transcribing from one medium to another is a way to share music. Sharing allows more channels, more recipients, more potential meanings. It raises questions about the core of the music. What carries on in a transcription, and what gets lost in translation?

Through transcription I share what the composer delivers. But I also share my own listening, my version, my motivation to touch these works with my own playing fingers. Transcription and recording become personal statements from both transcriber and performer.