Cikada has been a key player on the Nordic contemporary music scene since its formation in 1989. Never afraid to follow its own path, the ensemble continues to renew itself through astute, innovative programming, and the ever-present desire to let audiences experience some of the best music of our time.
The ensemble has since the outset consisted of ten permanent members: flute, clarinet, piano, percussion, string quintet and conductor. It performs at prestigious festivals such as Donaueschinger Musiktage, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Klangspuren Schwaz, Sacrum Profanum, Wittener Tage für Neue Kammermusik, Bergen International Festival, Warszaw Autumn, ECLAT Stuttgart and the Ultima Festival, of which it is a founding member.
Over the years Cikada has commissioned and premiered 200+ works by some of today’s leading composers both internationally and from Norway. This includes collaborations with composers such as Carola Bauckholt, Richard Barrett, Laurence Crane, James Dillon and Liza Lim, as well as recent commissions from Georg Friedrich Haas, Malin Bång, Clara Iannotta, and Klaus Lang. Cikada is also a strong protagonist for the many exciting voices of new Norwegian music, with large commissions and portrait concerts by Eivind Buene, Lars Petter Hagen, Jon Øivind Ness, Asbjørn Schaatun, Maja S.K. Ratkje, Rolf Wallin, and Kristine Tjøgersen to name a few.
Cikada has released numerous albums for ECM, LAWO Classics, Aurora and 2L among others, as well as appearing on several split albums and compilations. Their oeuvre has garnered accolades such as the Norwegian Grammy “Spellemannprisen”, the Edison Award and the prestigious Nordic Council’s Music Prize of 2005, in addition to several nominations.
Cikada is funded by the Norwegian Arts Council and Oslo Municipality.
