Esbjörn Hazelius - Vocals, Cittern, Violino d’amore and Guitar

Johan Hedin – Nyckelharpa, Octave Nyckelharpa and Vocals

JOHAN HEDIN and ESBJÖRN HAZELIUS are each among the formost folk musicians of Sweden today, and have ever since the formation of the duo Hazelius Hedin in 2008 made a great impact on the Scandinavian folk scene.

With the sounds of the nyckelharpa, octave nyckelharpa, cittern, guitar and violino d'amore along with Esbjörn’s heart-warming voice, Hazelius Hedin evoke their unmistakable, deeply touching version of the Swedish folk music, offering the listener a winding journey through the borderland between past and present.

Esbjörn Hazelius and Johan Hedin both grew up in the south of Sweden, where the traditional couple dance polska is prevailing.

Hazelius Hedin´s most recent album SILVERDALEN ( Silver Valley ) 2022 is a collection of music from widely different eras. Medieval ballads, emigrant songs, peasants tall tales and dance tunes from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries along with new composed instrumental an vocal music create a liberating span. In "Wrångel" we meet the farmer faced with the maid's unreasonable demands for gold rings, large quantities of beer and nightly bed company. "Den som frisker är och sund", traced back to the 17th century, is surprisingly current with its theme of the importance of a good health. A beautiful tune mysteriously titled ”Zoblar” puzzles with its unknown origin. Among the album’s more energetic parts we hear the wild ”Jämtlåtarna" and a schottis dedicated to ”Anyone”. Similar to previous releases, the recordings on Silverdalen consist solely of pure live recordings from the acoustic worlds of Johan Hedin: nyckelharpa & octave nyckelharpa, and Esbjörn Hazelius: vocals, cittern, guitar & violino d’amore.

The nyckelharpa is a Swedish folk music instrument which is played with a bow like a fiddle, has keys like a hurdy-gurdy, and sympathetic strings like a viola d’amore. It has been played for hundreds of years, and the oldest known picture is a stone carving in a church from around 1350. The nyckelharpa was a drone instrument up until the 20th century. The common nyckelharpa played today has about 40 keys in three rows, four melody strings and twelve sympathetic strings.