PROGRAM 2026
Jienat
Tromsø Storband & Andreas Fliflet with a unique premiere
Welcome into the musical universe of Jienat, where Joik meets music that combines pentatone melody forms from Sápmi with a harmonic and rhythmic richness that ranges from the low-key suggestive and hypnotic to the intense and saturated expressive.
Composer and multi-instrumentalist Andreas Fliflet arrives at the Northern Lights Festival 2026 with his musical universe Jienat in a completely new form. The repertoire has been specially orchestrated for the Tromsø Storband, and will be premiered on the Main Stage during the Northern Lights Festival!
In Jienat, the melodies are woven into a multicolored musical fabric, and along the way Fliflet has shamelessly knuckled threads from style-makers such as Joe Zawinul, Lyle Mays, Dizzy Gillespie, Igor Stravinsky, Bob Freedman and Claude Debussy.
Fronting tonight's concert are - in addition to Andreas Fliflet - Anne Gro Gaup and Inger Johanne Oskal. Both with an extensive track record in both joik and Sami popular music, and give the project a clear artistic voice where Sami tradition meets innovation, improvisation and great soundscapes.
Tromso Big Bands participation in the project is no accident. The ensemble is a versatile and contemporary big band with a number of successful collaborative projects behind it. Northern Lights Festival audiences will recognize them from concerts featuring Randy Brecker, Lisa Simone and Larry Carlton, among others, and last year with Marius Neset. The concerts with Tromsø Storband at the festival are always a success and this year will be no exception.
Conductor Fred Glesnes has a long time behind him and in 2024 he won Northern Lights Award for his work in the county. Shortly before, Glesnes received the 2023 Jazz Prize in the category for big band.
The project has been implemented with the support of the Arts Council. The concert is organized in cooperation with Tromsø Jazzklubb.
Welcome to the premiere of Jienat!