– Music is a way we can express our feelings and creativity, says Nicholai Evans. Together with his friends Valentin Hasani Holland-Nell and Jorik Kopala, he spends much of his free time in the studio at the youth center Tvibit in Tromsø. Their genre is Hip-Hop. – One day we come up with a line, then we go into the studio and work on from there, says Jorik. The rap trio are three of several young people who make digital music in their spare time. 18 per cent of children between the ages of 9 and 15 do like the boys from Tromsø, new statistics from Statistics Norway show. They find it a great advantage that they can find beats online, lay down some lines in the studio and collaborate with someone who is sitting in a completely different place. – It’s good that it has become so easy to make music, because then anyone who wants to can use it to express themselves – no matter what genre it is, says Nicholai. – And if you have a song that isn’t quite finished, then we don’t need to be here in the studio. You can do it from anywhere, as long as you have a PC, says Valentin. Nicholai Evans gets out what’s in his heart through music. Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / NRKNicholai Evans gets out what’s in his heart through music. Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / news – Giving power back to the people Ballinciaga is one of Norway’s most popular artists and leading exponents of digital music. They are happy that the opportunities to make music are now so accessible. – It gives power back to the people. You just need a PC and a music program to make music now. It doesn’t matter how rich, lucky or who you are, say the trio in Ballinciaga. They think it is particularly fun that so many children are following in their footsteps. – The young people control what’s cool and inspire us again to make better music. Ballinciaga draws inspiration from the young, and is happy that they can be an inspiration. Photo: Morten Skogly / news P3Ballinciaga draws inspiration from the young, and is glad they can be an inspiration. Photo: Morten Skogly / news P3 The world-renowned Norwegian artist and DJ Alan Walker is also happy about the opportunities that digital tools provide. – I think it’s fantastic that music has become so accessible to everyone and that you no longer have to grow up with a piano or go to music school to be able to express yourself through self-composed music, he says. Statistics from Statistics Norway show that the proportion of people who make digital music in their spare time decreases as age increases. 7 per cent of those between 16 and 24 do so, while in the 25 to 44 age group it is only 4 per cent. Alan Walker is clear that the network with young musicians and content producers on the internet has been important for his career. Photo: Tom Øverlie / news P3Alan Walker is clear that the network with young musicians and content producers on the internet has been important for his career. Photo: Tom Øverlie / news P3 Children also play traditional instruments Although children between the ages of 9 and 15 are the ones who make the most digital music, they still play traditional instruments. According to Statistics Norway, 21 per cent in that age group do it in their spare time. However, Alan Walker is best known for standing on stage behind a mixing desk and not with an acoustic guitar, but he is happy for people to do different things. – I also admire those who spend thousands of hours learning an instrument. I surround myself with musicians, songwriters, producers and DJs from all kinds of backgrounds and find that the diversity means that I am constantly growing as a musician and producer, he says. On average, just under 20 per cent of the population plays a traditional instrument in their spare time, according to statistics from Statistics Norway. Photo: Trygve Grønning / NRKI On average, just under 20 per cent of the population plays a traditional instrument in their spare time, according to statistics from Statistics Norway. Photo: Trygve Grønning / news Concerned that tradition is disappearing, Eivind Lauvold Bertheussen is studying music at Kongsbakken upper secondary school in Tromsø. His preferred instrument is the piano, and his genre is classical music. He is not a big fan of making digital music. – In classical music, we never really do that. I am very fond of the traditional instruments that make sound, and not that the computer just pumps out the sound, he says. The piano player still thinks that the possibility of making music using computers and apps has some positive aspects. – It means that more people can continue with music, no matter how good you are. It’s really only positive that music is becoming more widespread, no matter how you do it, he says. The piano player thinks it’s good that so many children make music in their spare time. – It’s fun that people are making music, regardless of whether you can do it or not. But I wouldn’t say it’s good music. Eivind Lauvold Bertheussen holds a button on traditional instruments. Photo: Mari Elise Nordgård / NRKEivind Lauvold Bertheussen holds a button on traditional instruments. Photo: Mari Elise Nordgård / news Bertheussen is, however, a little worried about what will happen if the digital overtakes traditional instruments. – Suddenly we lose the instruments, because no one can play them anymore, he says. What consequences do you think it could have? – Tradition and musicians are disappearing, he says. – When you play an instrument, you talk through the instrument, and that is perhaps a little more difficult to do through a computer – especially in classical music. – There will be a lot of “copy and paste” Ekko Forseth Hansen is also in the music department at Kongsbakken, and plays bass. Unlike Bertheussen, she has experience in making digital music. – For example, I’ve used it for drums, if I don’t have access to a drum kit. It allows the individual to make the music I want, without having to learn a new instrument, says Hansen. Ekko Forseth Hansen believes that digital aids have both advantages and disadvantages. Photo: Mari Elise Nordgård / NRKEKko Forseth Hansen believes that digital aids have both advantages and disadvantages. Photo: Mari Elise Nordgård / news But she also believes that extensive use of digital aids has its negative sides, and points to which songs top the charts today. – There is a lot that is “copy and paste”. and it will be the same over and over again. Then the lyrics quickly become the focus, says the bass player. – But it’s nice to the extent that you can spread messages and feelings that way, but a lot of it sounds the same. – Every generation has its own ways of expressing itself Editor, commentator and long-time music journalist in iTromsø, Egon Holstad, is not worried that digital music is almost as widespread as traditional instruments among children. – I think that as long as they make music, I am personally completely indifferent to what technical equipment they use, he says. Editor and commentator in Tromsø, Egon Holstad, what emerges in the statistics is both natural and predictable. Photo: Petter Strøm / news. Editor and commentator in Tromsø, Egon Holstad, what emerges in the statistics is both natural and predictable. Photo: Petter Strøm / news. – Every generation has its own ways of expressing itself. I would be more concerned if things were completely static and didn’t change. Music has always taken steps forward when new and old technologies and modes of expression have intersected. But he does not necessarily think everyone shares his view. – It is possible that there are some old blues guys who think that you should play the blues on the guitar – and that it is the only right thing to do. But I’m not there at all, says Holstad. He also makes a point that several types of music can be produced using digital aids – The fact that they make digital music is not the same as only flat electronics coming out the other end. You can also make rock, says Holstad. The editor has a wish for music in the years to come. – There is quite a lot of crap going on in society now, both nationally and internationally. We can only hope that it will also generate a lot of aggressive punk rock in the years to come. Jorik finds it easy to collaborate with other artists elsewhere in the country, and has a long list of who he wants to collaborate with in the future. Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / news – Everyone should try to make music digitally The boys at the youth center Tvibit in Tromsø think it’s cool that both Ballinciaga and Alan Walker have made such a big success with digital music, even if they are not the artists they listen to the most . – When I was little, I thought Alan Walker was really cool. When I found out that he was Norwegian too, it got even better, says Valentin. The young people want to be able to make a living from music, and hope more will dare to explore themselves and the levers in the studio. – I think perhaps there are many who do not dare to do it, because they are afraid of what people will say. But you just have to try, says Nicholai. – I think everyone should try making music digitally, at least once. Nicholai and Valentin work on the “hook”, while Jorik fine-tunes the PC. Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / news
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Children make the most digital music – Ballinciaga and Alan Walker happy with the trend – news Troms and Finnmark
