Vidar Skrede (born 1980) was a multi instrumentalist and a folk music artist already as a teenager. Today his instrument are hardanger violin, fiddle, 5-string octave viola, 6 and 12 string guitars, Greek bouzouki, bodhrán, whistles, mountain flute and willow flute, and he has been doing concerts, touring and working with music both in Norway and abroad.
Vidar Skrede has studied folk music performance at Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, and master in Nordic folk music at Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, Carl Nielsen Academy of Music in Odense, and Royal College of Music in Stockholm.
The music of Vidar Skrede is folk music from his home area in Rogaland in the South West of Norway, but also Nordic and urban folk music, and fusion of this. In otherwords the musical expression and style stretches from the exotic and traditional to the modern and urban, through own compositions, band playing and expanding of the genre.
Vidar Skrede is heard in bands like «The Secret Carpet Club» (NO/SE), «
Geitungen» (NO), «
AAMOS» (NO/UK), «
Stimenn» (NO/SE), «
NOMAS» (NO/SE/DK/FI), «
Vidvandre» (NO/SE), «
Fant&Fente» (NO), «
Vidar&Laffen» (NO) and «
The Great Norwegian Guitar Quartet» (NO). He is also contributing on recordings like «Geitungen - Vaniljesaus» (2001), «Geitungen - BRA KAST» (2005), «Gry Oftedal - Tvilevise» (2005), «Synnove Sletten - Nattfiol» (2005) and «Liv Runesdatter - Syng hjerte» (2008).The album, «Geitungen - BRA KAST», won the prize for best album of the year in open / experimental category at Norwegian folk music awards 2005.
His strong knowledge of folk music traditions, his genre-expanding skills and interests, his instruments and his playing, makes Vidar Skrede one of Scandinavia's most outstanding folk music artists of to day.
Listen to all of Vidar Skrede's music (over 35 tracks!), keep track of his gigs and get to know all about him at
www.vidarskrede.no
