Crossing Boundaries in Composition

Dr. Krishna Nagaraja’s work combines his own voice as a contemporary composer with a background as a performer in early music, and a deep immersion over the last 10 years in the folk music of the Nordic countries, resulting in well-received works combining Nordic folk music, baroque music, and a multitude of contemporary influences. His recent release on Challenge Records Tales from Norway, has been called “…the freshest art-musical treatment of Norwegian folk music I have heard in a very long time.” [Ballade]

His doctoral research focused on specific strands of Nordic folk music and their relationship to elements coming from outside their boundaries, as well as artistic identity in relation to collective bodies of traditional knowledge.

Taking a case study of his recent critically-acclaimed string quartet Stringar, which is built on the Norwegian folk dances called springar, Dr. Nagaraja explores the boundaries and labels which challenge many contemporary musicians, and how it might be possible to use composition as a tool to construct temporary “musical homes” in the interstitial spaces between genres, influences, and research areas. 

This talk and discussion on the boundaries and definition challenges faced by many contemporary musicians will undoubtedly be a fascinating one for Ireland’s composers.