Interview med Stringflip: “Schweizerhalle var et meget dejligt rum at spille i”

Dansk/svenske Stringflip spiller kontemporær folkemusik inspireret af den nordiske og keltiske tradition. De udgav deres selvbetitlede debutalbum i april 2021 og har siden høstet rosende anmeldelser hos. bl.a. britiske ‘Living Tradition’ og danske ‘Rootszone’. Kvartetten spillede til Folk Spot Denmark 2021, og her kan I læse om deres oplevelse i Tønder

Hvordan var det at være på Tønder Festival i nogle andre rammer?

Det var den første Tønder festival for tre ud af fire af os, så vi har ikke så meget at sammenligne med. Men vi var glade for endelig at komme med omend under usædvanlige omstændigheder.

Er det godt at være tilbage på scenen?

Det er naturligvis dejligt at være tilbage på arbejde igen. 

Hvad var den bedste oplevelse for jer under Folk Spot

Schweizerhalle var et meget dejligt rum at spille i, så det er jo altid et kæmpe plus. Vi var også svært tilfredse med hotellet.

Har I holdt jer i musikalsk træning under corona-perioden? (har I spillet koncerter?)

Som mange andre bands, anvendte vi nedlukningen på at indspille plade. I de små åbninger der var (f.eks. sommer 2020) nåede vi ud og spille et par håndfulde koncerter. Vi spiller alle i mange forskellige projekter, så vi har alle været aktive under nedlukningen.

Nu når verden er åben, hvad er så næste skridt for jer?

Vi er lige blevet nomineret til en DMA roots som årets nye navn, så det håber vi genererer noget mere trafik. Og så kigger vi så småt mod Tyskland og Belgien og er i gang med nyt materiale.

Interview with Stringflip: “Schweizerhalle was a lovely venue to play at”


Danish/swedish Stringflip plays contemporary folk music inspired by the Nordic and Celtic tradition. They released their self-titled debut album in april 2021 and has since then gotten great reviews from British The Living Tradition,  and Danish Rootszone. Read more about their concert and experience at Folk Spot 2021.

How was it to be at Tønder Festival in some different surroundings than normal? 

It was the first Tønder Festival for three out of four from the band so we haven’t got so much to compare to. But we were very happy to finally be a part of Folk Spot even though the circumstances were a bit unusual. 

Is it good to be back on stage?

We’re naturally really happy to be back at work again. 

What has been the best experience during Folk Spot?

Schweizerhalle was a lovely venue to play at so that’s always great. And we were also very pleased with the hotel. 

Have you kept in musical training during the Corona pandemic?

As many other bands we used the lockdown to record an album. In the small periods where the world was open again fx summer 2020, we got to play a few concerts. We play in many different projects so all of us have been active during the lockdown. 

Now that the world is open again, what is Stringflip’s next move?

We just got nominated for a DMA Roots as ‘New Name of the Year’, so we hope that it can generate some buzz. We’re also looking a bit towards Germany and Belgium and we’re also working on new material. 

Interview with JUMA: “Music is a community and it must be experienced in the company of others”

JUMA is a cross-cultural world/folk group that unites the Syrian with the Nordic. The Syrian musician Bakri Hemmami came to Denmark in 2015 after fleeing Aleppo. As many others Bakri has left everything behind but he has carried the music with him all the way and he now play it along with the rest of JUMA. Read more about their experience at Tønder Festival 2021.

How was it to be at Tønder Festival in some different surroundings than normal? 

Tønder Festival is and has always been amazing! This year was no exception but we sure missed some of the nerve and presence that happens on the festival site – we missed the dust and the sun that connects us all. Nonetheless it was a great alternative. 

Is it good to be back on stage?

It has been fantastic – you feel at home again and at the same time it’s incredibly privileged to finally be able to play concerts and experience the huge amount of love that exists between musicians and the audience. I think we first really understood how much we missed it when we were on stage again. 

What has been the best experience during Folk Spot?

It’s hard to pin-point a specific experience because the entire weekend was a cornucopia of love and joy. When we got there, we were welcomed by everyone from the audience and volunteers to technicians and the other bands. But to play for a filled venue at Schweizerhalle at Tønder Festival was definitely a highlight – both for our recently finished tour and in general for our band. 

Have you kept in musical training during the Corona pandemic?

We have played as much as possible. Last year we were able to play a few live-streamed concerts and even though it has been a great experience, nothing compares to the love you feel when you play in front of a real audience. 

Now that the world is open again, what is JUMA’s next move?

We would like to record more music and then we’re of course off to play loads of concerts. Music is a community and it must be experienced in the company of others – and even though we just got home from our tour we can’t wait to get on the road again. 

Besides that we have plans of collaborating with different municipalities in Denmark to build a bridge between the Danish minorities and the etchnic Danes. We want to play pop-up concerts in vulnerable neighbourhoods so the culture come get’s out to the places where it’s really needed.

Photo: Bo Petersen, NoLightStudio

Interview med JUMA: “Musik er fællesskab og skal opleves i fællesskab”

JUMA er en tværkulturel world/folk-gruppe, der forener det syriske med nordiske. Den syriske musiker Bakri Hemmami kom til Danmark i 2015 efter at være flygtet fra Aleppo. Bakri har som mange andre efterladt alt bag sig, men musikken har han haft med sig hele vejen, og han kombinerer nu sine musikalske evner med resten af JUMA. Læs om gruppen oplevelse med at spille til Folk Spot Denmark 2021.

Hvordan var det at være på Tønder Festival i nogle andre rammer? 

Tønder festival er og har altid været fantastisk! I år var ingen undtagelse, men det er klart, at der manglede lidt af den nærhed og nerve, som kommer på festivalpladsen. Vi manglede selvfølgelig støvet og solen til at binde os helt sammen. Ikke desto mindre var det et enormt flot plaster på såret! 

𝐄𝐫 𝐝𝐞𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐝𝐭 𝐚𝐭 𝐯æ𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐥𝐛𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐩𝐚̊ 𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐧?

Det var helt fantastisk – man følte sig på én gang hjemme igen, og samtidig utroligt privilegeret over endelig at kunne spille koncerter og opleve den enorme kærlighed, der kan opstå mellem musikere og publikum. Jeg tror først det rigtigt gik op for os, hvor meget vi havde savnet det, da vi stod der igen. 

𝐇𝐯𝐚𝐝 𝐯𝐚𝐫 𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐝𝐬𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐣𝐞𝐫 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐨𝐥𝐤 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐭?

Det er svært at pinpointe en specifik oplevelse, for hele weekenden var et overflødighedshorn af kærlighed og glæde. Fra vi ankom, blev vi taget enormt godt imod af alt og alle, fra publikum til frivillige, fra teknikere til andre bands. Men at spille for en fyldt sal i Schweizerhalle på Tønder Festival er klart et af højdepunkterne, både på vores nyligt overståede turné og generelt for vores orkester. 

𝐇𝐚𝐫 𝐈 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐭 𝐣𝐞𝐫 𝐢 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐤𝐚𝐥𝐬𝐤 𝐭𝐫æ𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐚-𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐧? (𝐡𝐚𝐫 𝐈 𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐤𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐫?)

Vi har spillet det, der kunne lade sig gøre. Sidste år kunne man jo spille et par live-streamede koncerter, og selvom det også har været dejlige oplevelser, er der intet, der kan måle sig med den kærlighed, man mærker, når man spiller foran et ægte publikum af kød og blod. 

𝐍𝐮 𝐧𝐚̊𝐫 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐞𝐫 𝐚̊𝐛𝐞𝐧, 𝐡𝐯𝐚𝐝 𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐚̊ 𝐧æ𝐬𝐭𝐞 𝐬𝐤𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐣𝐞𝐫?

Vi vil gerne indspille en plade mere, og så skal vi selvfølgelig ud at spille en masse koncerter. Musik er fællesskab og skal opleves i fællesskab, og selvom vi lige er vendt hjem efter vores turné, kan vi slet ikke vente med at komme afsted igen. 

Derudover har vi planer om at indgå samarbejde med en række kommuner i Danmark for at forsøge at bygge bro mellem minoritets danskerne og de etniske danskere. Vi vil ud og lave pop-up koncerter i de udsatte boligområder, så kulturen kan komme ud, der hvor den lige nu er enormt vigtig.

Photo: Bo Petersen, NoLightStudio