ARVID ENGEGÅRD – 22 YEAR IN LOFOTEN

You have been the festival’s Artistic Director since its founding in 2004. Looking back, what do you see as the biggest change?

What strikes me most is how the festival has found its own voice. In the beginning, it was an idea: to create chamber music of the highest quality in Lofoten. Over the years, that identity has become clearer, and the festival has developed a distinctive character that both musicians and audiences recognize. But the fundamental vision remains the same. The closeness between performers and listeners is still at its heart.

Photo: Peder Pedersen

What characterizes the festival today?

It has become a meeting place. People don’t come for just one concert, but for an entire week of experiences. Many musicians return year after year, and a unique sense of community has developed. It creates a different kind of energy from what you often find at larger festivals.

How has chamber music changed during these years?

In many ways, we are living in a very exciting time. Musicians are more open-minded than before, the repertoire is broader, and audiences are curious. At the same time, we compete for attention with far more distractions and alternatives than in the past. That is precisely why I believe the live encounter between people is becoming increasingly important.

The Engegård Quartet has been a central part of the festival from the very beginning. How has the quartet evolved over the years?

An ensemble is never finished. You change as musicians and as people, and sometimes through new members as well. The important thing is to preserve your curiosity. The moment we stop searching, music risks becoming a museum. It is that search which keeps an ensemble alive.

Many people associate you with Beethoven. What is it that continually draws you back to his music?

Beethoven asks questions that can never be fully answered. Every time you return to one of his works, you discover something new. The late quartets are perhaps the clearest example of this. They grow with experience, and with life itself.

Arvid playing togeter with Leif Ove Andsnes. Photo: Peder Pedersen

Over the years, the festival has welcomed many of the world’s leading musicians. What do you look for when inviting artists?

First and foremost, personalities. Of course, the artistic level must be exceptional, but there are many outstanding musicians. I am interested in people who have something to say through their music and who also want to be part of the community that develops around the festival.

You and Festival Director Knut Kirkesæther have worked together for more than fifty years, including the last twenty-two with this festival. How has that shaped your work?

It is a great advantage to know each other so well. We have followed each other through different stages of life, both as musicians and as organizers, and that creates a deep sense of trust. We rarely need long explanations to understand where the other person is coming from. At the same time, we are not always in agreement, nor should we be. Many of the best ideas emerge through discussion and debate. What we do share is a common vision of what the festival should be: artistic excellence, curiosity, and a meaningful encounter between music, people, and place.

What are you most looking forward to in this year’s festival?

It is almost impossible to choose. What I always look forward to are the moments that cannot be planned. When musicians meet in new constellations, when a work suddenly reveals itself in a new way, or when you sense the audience holding its breath. That is why we do this.

After more than twenty years as Artistic Director, what still motivates you?

Curiosity. Music is a field in which you are never fully educated, never finished learning. And then there is the sense of community surrounding the festival. Every summer brings new encounters, new friendships, and new musical discoveries. That is what gives me the energy to continue.

During the festival's first edition in 2004, he met musicians who he immediately established ia new quartet, The Engegård Quartet. Photo: Lars Bryngelsson