Gorrlaus på Tou

Gorrlaus Saturday 20.10.24

Location: Tou Loftet Doors open: 12:30 PM Concert starts: 1:00 PM

Performers:

Ottar Kåsa – Harding fiddle

Haugesund Spelemannslag

To fully capture the music and atmosphere, we are hosting two consecutive days of folk music!

Ottar Kåsa is a renowned Harding fiddle player and fiddle maker from Arabygdi, Telemark. He is one of the foremost Harding fiddle players in Norway and is no stranger to Stavanger. In 2021, he performed a legendary concert during Tou's 20th-anniversary celebration, where the audience's cheers and stomping were so intense that we thought the loft might collapse. Parts of the concert were broadcast on NRK's Folkemusikktimen. As a fiddle maker, he crafts traditional Harding fiddles as well as experimental violas and cellos, with commissions from the Kronos Quartet and other prominent musicians worldwide.

Haugesund Spelemannslag is a group of Harding fiddle players from the Haugalandet area. The group has competed multiple times in the Landskappleiken (Norwegian Folk Music Championship) and placed high in the results. The spelemannslag is largely the result of Haugesund Mållag's folk music school, started in the mid-90s. Siri Dyvik was a key figure, both as leader and tradition bearer. Today, the group consists of around 14 active fiddlers, with some also performing solo. Their repertoire mainly features folk music from Hordaland and Rogaland. The group has worked extensively to revive and promote the region's local folk music, which remains unfamiliar and exotic to many despite being a valuable part of local cultural heritage.