The liksong from Suldal is perhaps one of the most unique things we have in the Norwegian folk music tradition.

In this concert, Song Circus was inspired by the old and deeply fascinating hymn phenomenon from Rogaland. Liksang describes the now-extinct tradition where a small group of singers led rural funeral processions by singing with a special tonality and a sound that made it “chill down the spine” of those who listened.

Analysis of archival recordings reveals the use of neutral intervals – scale steps that lie between the usual major and minor notes.

The concert begins with an outdoor walk with lanterns and old hymn melodies, inspired by the traditional funeral processions. We then move indoors, where we will perform Morten Joh’s new work for Song Circus and tape recorders, a kind of meditative state music based on the tonality of the funeral hymns.