Ensemble Currentes

Currentes was founded in 2006 by its artistic director, Jostein Gundersen. Since then, it has performed in Norway, Germany, the Czech Republic, and Italy. Currentes defines its artistic goals as within the field of historically informed performance and specialises in polyphonic music from the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Its particular agenda is the exploration of that which has not been transmitted in musical notation, such as instrumentation, improvisation of ornaments, or entire parts. The ensemble ?s interest in new forms of expression has led not only to unorthodox performances of medieval and renaissance music, but also to its commissioning of new works by the Norwegian composers: Eivind Buene´s Minitaures for Medieval Instruments was premiered in 2011, Morten Eide Pedersen´s new work for the ensemble will be premiered during the 2012-13 season. Currentes is supported by Arts Council Norway and City of Bergen, and is co-founder and partner of Bergen Medieval Music Days, a festival that takes place every September. Jostein Gundersen graduated from the Norwegian Artistic Research Fellowship Programme (equivalent to an academic PhD) in 2009, as the first artist with historical music as speciality. Besides his concert activities, Jostein Gundersen teaches recorder, ensemble and music theory at the University of Bergen, Grieg Academy - Institute of Music, and historical improvisation at the Hochschule für Musik und Theater "Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy", Leipzig.