SELMA FRENCH
Foto: Eirik Havnes
Selma French is a Norwegian singer, composer and fiddle player. Her music reveals an admiration for Norwegian and English folk music, as well as containing an airy energy from somewhere unknown.
The debut album «Changes like the weather in the mountain», consisting of Selma’s songs wrapped in electric guitar, wurlitzer, fiddles and some high pitched choir voices was released August 19, 2022 and got listed as one of the best norwegian albums of the year as well as recieving a numbers of great reviews.
Selma is already known in the folk-scene in Norway as a member of bands such as Masåva and Morgonrode. She has toured and worked with with artists like Frøkedal & Familien, Sondre Lerche, Karl Bjorå, Siv Jakobsen and The Switch. Her musical work has been acknowledged by many, lastly featured as the theme song in the Viaplay series Furia. Selma French is her solo project. In her band she plays with some of norways most exciting musicians in the open improvised/jazz/folkmusic scene, Christian Winther (electric guitar), Andreas Winther (drums), Anna Ueland (synth) and Erik Sollid (hardangerfiddle). They have played numbers of well received concerts. Their concert at VillVillVest 2022 was the only concert that recieved 6/6 and a long review in the Norwegian musicmagazine, GAFFA.NO.
Selma French has grown up in a little university suburban place called Ås. Surrounded by folk music she has played and created music all her life. The list of musical inspirations is long, from Linda Perhacs, Nick Drake, Fairport Convention, Judee Sill, to Frøkedal, Sundfør and Sandy Denny.
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OTHER PROJECTS:
MASÅVA
Masåva is a norwegian popband established in 2017. They have released two albums, the first was nominated for the norwegian grammy award. They are releasing their third album in 2024.
Selma French Bolstad (fiddle and vocals)
Martin Morland (bass and vocals)
Øystein Aarnes Vik (drums, percussion and vocals)
Solveig Wang (keys and vocals)
Foto: Margit Rønning Omholt
MORGONRODE
Andreas Skår Winther (percussion, drums)
Rasmus Kjorstad (octave fiddle, langeleik, vocal)
Fredrik Luhr Dietrichson (double bass)
Selma French Bolstad (fiddle, hardanger fiddle, nyckelharpe, vocal)
Helga Myhr (hardanger fiddle, vocal)
Morgonrode is an old Norwegian word describing the red sun rising at dawn, and this also gives a good description of the bands way of making folk music. In the same way as the fresh rays of light from the sun travels as it rises, the music is free to travel whatever direction it wants as the band progresses and evolves.
With the unique and rich sound mixture of bowed and plucked fiddles, resonance strings, double bass and drums, their use of the traditional Norwegian folk tunes, combined with original lyrics, and new music composed by the band is mixed with parts of improvisation colored by the members diverse background.
Foto: Christian Winther
Morgonrode will release their third album following their two critically acclaimed albums «Morgonrode» from 2019 and "Du milde verden" from 2020. Their first album, Morgonrode, received both Norwegian grammy for best folk/traditional album and a nomination for best alternative album at last years «Folkelarm» in Oslo. All records are given out on Ta:lik records.