The leading Norwegian player of traditional fiddle - hardingfele - Hallvard Bjørgum from Setesdal - has again visited Azerbaijan. He was here first in 2000, when he teamed up with leading Azerbaijani kamancha player Elshan Mansurov. This time they played together at the Baku Music Academy and in the Mugham Club, where they were entertaining delegates to a board meeting of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiatiative, EITI (which, by the way, confirmed Azerbaijan's leading role in this forum). The two players have evolved into a harmonious musical duo, with the absolute highlight being their joint rendering of Tello/Nor, which is a discovery of similarities in Azerbaijan and Norwegian folk music.
Hallvard also played with local musicians in Ganja, at a local wedding in Seyfali/Shamkir, and in Sheki. His visit was organised in cooperation between the Norwegian Humanitarian Enterprise and the Royal Norwegian Embassy, which will be looking for possibilities to build on this musical bridge between Azerbaijan and Norway also in the future.