On Friday the 29th at Panorama Bar, Oslo resident André Bratten and Tromsø dweller Charlotte Bendiks join forces with a couple of Russian acts (HMOT, Buttechno b2b Low808) and German DJs (Rødhåd and Ateq). Bendiks loosens up the dance floor with her signature mix of euphoric house, African groove, and Latin beats. Refined emoter, and disco avant-gardist Bratten sets a remembrance of Oslo’s darker days into rhythm with sepulchral deliciousness.

CTM's Opening Concert at HAU1 on Saturday, 30.1 features Oslo-based, Ethopian-born vocalist Sofia Jernberg in guest co-curator Rabih Beaini's composition “For The Right Red Hand”. Jernberg appears alongside two trumpet players (Liz Allbee, Mazen Kerbaj), two guitarists (Sam Shalabi, Sharif Sehnaoui), two drummers (Daniele De Santis, Tommaso Cappellato), and one other singer (Rully Shabara of Senyawa). Through barely audible tones, repetition, and extended techniques, this interplay of standpoints is punctuated and gradually enhanced by Beaini at the mixing desk, reaching a cohesive, open geography of human spirit. 

A week later, on Saturday 6.2, another three Norwegian artists appear across various programmes. At HAU2, prolific experimental vocalist Stine Janvin Motland, who is known for her highly original vocal techniques, appears alongside sound artist Felicity Mangan in the duo Native Instrument. The project combines electronic and vocal adaptations of animal and insect recordings. On the same programme is a collaboration between two New Zealand artists, FIS and Rob Thorne. Two different rooms at YAAM also showcase Norwegian talent: on the main stage, Berlin resident Stine Omar joins German Max Boss for the non-chalant/imaginative pop project Easter, and two Oslo-based sensations, Purpurr Purple and Slick Shoota, deliver sets specialising in jungle and footwork.