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Musical holiday tale a cultural mix of the stars
He's heard his father perform an annually acclaimed Christmas concert of Russian songs numerous times over the years and is a longtime musician himself. But Sveinung Lystrup Thesen has never shared a stage with his dad. That will change at 7 p.m. Sunday at Huset as Thesen and about 50 other Longyearbyen choir singers help Geirr Lystrup perform "Stjerna Fra Øst" ("Star From the East"), a Nordic Christmas story Lystrup presents annually throughout Norway with the Moscow Balalaika Quartet. "The concept is Russian folk songs and my father wrote new texts to those merry legends," Thesen said, noting there are many historic and artistic similarities among both northern cultures. This is Lystrup's second performance of the concert in Longyearbyen, following a 2005 trip when he also appeared in Barentsburg. Backing Lystrup and the Moscow quartet at this year's concert are the Longyearbyen mixed choir, Store Norske men's choir and singer Liv Mari Schei as a featured soloist. The Moscow Balalaika Quartet, promoted as one of Russia's leading folk groups, will perform several songs separately. Another concert by the group is planned Monday at a time to be announced during Sunday's performance. Lystrup, 60, a singer, songwriter and instrumentalist living in Brumunddal, has recorded more than 20 albums since 1972, venturing into traditional, folk, children's, blues and other genres. "Stjerna Fra Øst," released as an album in 2002, was praised by one reviewer as "a luminous poetic story about a child who found faith, hope and love of life, (and) puts the Christmas gospel in our Nordic forest landscape and our own mythical world." Thesen, a member of the Longyearbyen bluegrass band Blåmyra, has helped his father and the quartet communicate while arranging past performances since he speaks Russian and Norwegian – plus two other languages. But he said their broad musical paths have never crossed on stage, a prospect that doesn't make him nervous as a choir singer Sunday. "Stjerna Fra Øst" is usually performed in churches due to the concert's sacred theme, but the Longyearbyen performance is at Huset since Svalbard Church is too small for a sizable audience, Thesen said. Rehearsing with Lystrup and the quartet will be limited to a single session, since they are scheduled to arrive only a few hours before the concert. Thesen said on-the-fly performances are common due the number of concerts typically performed during the holiday season. "They don't have two or three days to spend with each choir," he said. "That's part of the charm – it's intense." It helps the arrangement, due to its roots, is ideal for amateur ensembles. "It's not very difficult," Thesen said. "The notes are very melodic. It has to be for folk music that's been passed on." The two Longyearbyen choirs, who usually practice separately, have been working together on the concert for the past few weeks, Thesen said. The character of the performance varies with the size and skill of the choirs in towns, but he feels good about the local talent. "I think it's a pretty big choir," he said. Also, "in a lot of choirs in Norway they struggle to get men." Tickets, available in advance at Huset and Næringsbygget, are 200 kroner for adults, 100 kroner for youths. CDs, books and other items will be sold and autographed after the show.
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