Ketil Bjørnstad is a trained concert pianist, recording artist, and one of Norway’s most productive and widely read authors, with a long list of novels and biographies to his name. He revealed himself early on as an extraordinarily gifted musician, but at the age of eighteen he set classical music aside and began performing with folk singers, avant-garde jazz musicians, and other artists from the vibrant creative music scene of the 1970s. In his writing, he frequently returns to artistic milieus, both contemporary and those of Kristiania’s art and bohemian circles around the turn of the twentieth century.
COMING UP in 2025 & 2026:
EVENING SONG – AFTENSANG – SOLO PIANO / JAG ETTER VIND / NIGHTWALKER / NEW MORNING
Ketil Bjørnstad offers us piano music for the twilight hour on the album “Evening Song – Aftensang.” The project began when Bjørnstad was contacted by organist and conductor Svein Rustad, who wished for him to compose “Evening Songs” based on several poems from the collection “Båt på fjorden” (Aschehoug, 2021).
The piano pieces are inspired by light, and by the idea of bringing us back into nature’s realm — the places Bjørnstad has walked, sat, and sensed for decades, which are never quite the same. Even though the vantage points remain unchanged, their atmosphere and light always shift. We remain in a process, just as in life itself. Ketil Bjørnstad explains:
“In Evening Song, I return to the intimate space, alone with the piano and all its possibilities, where every overtone plays a role. Sound, rhythm, melody, and improvisation. This has been my life’s project through all these years. And I am fortunate to have so many inspiring and professional people around me. They mean a great deal, also in the creative process.”
“The solo concerts have always been the foundation of my musical career. They mark the beginning and the end. Alone with the piano, a distinctive and close connection arises with the audience — a connection that influences the musical choices along the way.”
And it is precisely in the meeting between melody, rhythm, resonance, and improvisation that Bjørnstad seeks new sources of inspiration. For that reason, none of these concerts are planned in detail. They emerge in the space between pianist and audience, between the grand piano and the concert hall.