Submitted Photo The Oslo Chamber Choir from Norway, directed by Hakon Nystedt, will be coming to Minot in late September.

The Oslo Chamber Choir from Norway, award-winning specialists in the folk music of Scandinavia, will be coming to the Minot State University Division of Performing Arts as its Artists in Residence and also present a brief concert at this year’s Norsk Hostfest in late September.

The choir will be performing a free and public masterclass/open rehearsal at MSU on Friday, Sept. 29. They will also grace the stage at Norsk Hostfest on Sept. 30 for a brief concert and meet-and-greet. On Sunday, Oct. 1, at 3 p.m. in Ann Nicole Nelson Hall at MSU, the choir will perform for the first time in North Dakota in a full-length concert of a cappella choral music.

Emerson Eads, assistant professor of music at MSU, said he first heard the Oslo Chamber Choir when he was living in Alaska in 2011.

“They were live in the studios of ‘Performance Today’ (a classical music radio program) with Fred Child. They were singing music from their recent CD ‘Strid.’ I had to pull to the side of the road. It was a moment I’ll never forget. From that moment on I was a fan,” said Eads.

When the Minot State University Concert Choir toured Norway in 2019, Eads visited them in Oslo and discussed perhaps connecting with Minot State University and its choir.

The Oslo Chamber Choir is directed by Hakon Nystedt, grandson of composer, conductor and choral pedagogue Knut Nystedt.

With the generosity of donors, Eads said the Oslo Chamber Choir will be coming to Minot.