Kladde
VIOLINIST - GREENLAND
Hanne Saandvig
Hanne is a violinist who is well known all over Greenland. She has her degree from the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, where she graduated in 1998. Hanne has been assisting in the symphony orchestras in both Aarhus and Aalborg, and being touring with ensembles in Denmark, Norway and Greenland. From 2003-2015, she was the principal of Nuuk Music School, where she also were employed as violin teacher as well as conducting the string orchestra. Hanne has, among others, founded Agiartartoqatigiit - the string orchestra association in Nuuk. Agiartartoqatigiit is helping to expose string music to the the people of Nuuk.
VIOLIST - ICELAND / NORWAY
Anna Hugadóttir
Anna Hugadóttir is an Icelandic violist, residing in Norway. She has a BA degree in chamber music and string teaching from Fontys Hogeschool for de Kunsten in Tilburg, The Netherlands.
In recent years she has followed conducting courses at the Norwegian Academy of Music and regularly follows courses on string teaching and playing.
Anna has worked as a violin and viola teacher in Iceland and Norway since 2007. She is also a freelance viola and baroque viola player and has performed a wide range of music with diverse ensembles and orchestras, including several indie and metal bands, theatre music and studio work.
VIOLIST - ICELAND / GERMANY
Fidel Atli Quintero Gasparson
Fidel Atli Quintero Gasparsson was born in 1996 in Freiburg, Germany. Like many players of the viola, Fidel first learned the violin. He began his studies 7 years old at the Suzuki school of Reykjavik with Þórdís Stross and later Ari Vilhjálmsson at the Reykjavik College of Music, changing to the viola in 2014 and becoming a pupil of Þórunn Ósk Marinósdóttir. He currently studies in the Dresden Conservatory of Music. Fidel is a member of the chamber orchestra Elja and a substitute player in the Symphony Orchestra of Iceland and recently played with the Icelandic Opera. He plays a viola built by Hans Johannsson.
PIANIST - THE FAROE ISLANDS
Birgitte Schnakenburg
Birgitte Schnakenburg has her degree from The Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen where she studied under professor Arne Skjold Rasmussen. Later on, she studied under professor Tatiana Nikolaewa (Moscow). In 2005, Birgitte got employed at the Faroese School of Music in Tórshavn as pianist/accompanist. Since then, she has played hundreds of concerts with students at the music school, MGK (basic course for young music talents), the annual Associated Board exams, MGK exams, admission tests at conservatories and contests including Berlingske, Gade, Øresundssolist and Stella Polaris. Birgitte has in addition to her work at the music school, also been collaborating with colleagues from the Faroe Islands - Monika Stauss Joensen, violin and Ken Jones, trompet - among others, and both have recorded two CD's where Birgitte can be heard. Birgitte has also recorded a solo album with music composed by the danish-faroese composer, Kristian Blak. In the past few years, Birgitte has collaborated with the flutist, Toke Lund Christiansen. With Toke, as well as Monika and Ken, she has played music specially composed for them. Birgitte has been touring in both Denmark, London, New York, Arizona - and earlier this year in Nuuk with Ken Jones, where they were playing concerts as well as teaching.
PIANIST - DENMARK
Annemarie Kier Jørgensen
As a child, Annemarie Kier Jørgensen received piano lessons at the then-called Aarhus Folkemusikskole (now Aarhus Music School). Here she studied piano under Tove Stork and ear training by the Aarhus-legend Jette Tikjøb. In 1964 she got accepted into the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, where she studied under Ellen Gilberg. Source of great inspiration in those years, was also the composer Jens Wilhelm Pedersen - better known as Fuzzy (danish film composer).
Besides piano, Rie took classical percussion classes, where she was taught by Bent Lyloff. The percussion classes led to a collaboration between Rie and five other students who started a percussion group, which was widely used by contemporary modern classical composers. The group performed works by various composers, like: Ole Buch and Timme Ørvad. Annemarie graduated in 1972. The same year, she was employed at Aarhus Music School (and various other music schools), where she has been teaching until the summer 2016. Throughout the years she has had many tasks as accompanist, partly in music school, partly in professional context as performing musician. In 1981 she released Jonathan's Boogie Woogie Book, which has since been used diligently as educational material by piano teachers all around Denmark. Rie has accompanied the students and teachers at Unison Strings Festival both in 2015 and 2016.
ilulissat
In 2018, Unison Strings Festival will be held in Ilulissat.
The beautiful city by the Disco Bay, will be the meeting point for string students from Greenland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Denmark. This is made possible with the great support from Avannaata Kommunia, Hotel Hvide Falk, Culture Centre Sermermiut, Jørgen Brønlund School, the Zion Church and Naleraq.
Sisimiut
Besides being the second largest town in Greenland, Sisimiut is known for hosting Arctic Circle Race and Arctic Sounds Festival - and in 2015 and 2016, Unison Strings Festival was held in Sisimiut, too. The string students of Sisimiut will once again be joining Unison Strings Festival - this time in Ilulissat. Besides the main sponsors, we would like to thank Qeqqata Kommunia for making their trip possible.
