The talent development project Young Nordic Stars stems from the now completed pilot project PLAY!GROUND LIVE NORDIC from 2017; from February to March last year, 12 carefully selected young musicians from Denmark, Sweden and Finland reject neighboring countries on a two-week tour which brought Nordic society to the forefront in terms of culture, language and their own distinctive musical expression.

PLAY!GROUND LIVE NORDIC was  means as to explore the tour as a mobile, Nordic platform for young musicians and create and innovative foundation for musical skills development in the Nordic countries. The direct inspiration from this publishing broadband now in the new project – Young Nordic Stars from 2019 to 2020.

Resting on the shoulders of the PLAY!GROUND LIVE NORDIC pilot project, as well as the many years of experience that the national talent development project PLAY!GROUND LIVE has brought, Young Nordic Stars will create the foundation for a joint Nordic platform for musical talent development between neighboring countries. In collaboration with the Orphanage Uummannaq, the Kuula Institute, the Legato Music Institute and the Nordic Institute in Åland (NIPÅ), Swinging Europe creates a long-term effort to cultivate professional musical careers that have just taken their first small step among undiscovered talents in the Nordic countries. Stars are focused on giving musical star seeds in the villages and outside the vibrant cultural life of the cities the chance to develop personally, socially and professionally through the project’s reach. It also opens the doors for young Nordic musicians to establish solid network connections, both domestically and internationally, in the hope of a future career flourishing. Through the project’s fundamental focus on the Nordic community, as well as the similarities and differences found herein, The young musical participants thus have the opportunity to reflect on their own individual national identity in the meeting with other Nordic peers. From the 15th – 19th May 2018, we visited our new partner, the Orphanage Uummannaq in Greenland, as development stage in the now completed pilot project PLAY!GROUND LIVE NORDIC to combine a partner meeting with try-outs for the young Greenlandic musicians.

Young Nordic Stars is based on Swinging Europe’s 17-year successful project, PLAY!GROUND LIVE. The first Nordic version of this project, GAMES! GROUND LIVE NORDIC broadcast of the concept in 2017. Young Nordic stars will be based on both the individual and the band, helped when the 12 selected musicians create their very own Nordic tone under the direction of musician and composer Kenneth Dahl Knudsen. I collaborated with the Orphanage in Uummannaq (GL), the Kuula Institute and the Korsholm Music Institute (FIN), the Nordic Institute in Åland (NIPÅ) and Swinging Europe (DK) selected 3 young musicians from each partner country to participate in the annual unique band composition. The project will commence in January 2019 and will run until September 2020.

Through various young-to-young workshops and seminars, the Young Nordic Stars will not only require reflection on talent development among the twelve selected Nordic musicians, men will create the foundation for music teachers, organizations and institutions throughout the Nordic region to draw on each other’s experience in music techniques.

The project has focused on and prolonged the proliferation of partners in all Nordic countries over the longer term. It is thus important that the young people get reflected on their own experiences and share them through young-to-young learning, men also on a comparative science and exchange of experience between the partners will incorporate from the start in the Young Nordic Stars’ future rate.

The band consists of musicians aged 15-22 who were selected at a partner meeting held at Swinging Europe’s office in Herning on April 4, 2019.After an intense three-day study period, the musicians held concerts at the following locations: Højskolen Skærgården ( DK), Klejtrup Efterskole (DK), Lawn in Tivoli (DK), Asylcenter Sandholm (DK), Restaurant Patio (Vaasa, FL), Restaurant Strampen (Vaasa, FL), Parkstraden (Närpes, FL), Café Jungman (Kristinestad, FL), M / S Amorella’s Seaside Cafeteria, Åland Radio (Mariehamn, Å), and for the Emmaus Festival (Mariehamn, Å).

During these very diverse concerts, the young musicians were formed and had good experience in relation to being touring musicians. From experience, mentioned, collaboration, efficiency, flexibility, patience and self-determination. During the entire stay in Denmark, they were also closely followed by filmmaker Jonas Kjærsgård, who produces to film about the project: a one-minute commercial film for social media, as well as a 5-minute film for use in dissemination, as well as further development of the project. held the young people – after a brief introduction on workshop planning organized by Swinging Europe’s project and tour leader Cüneyt Pala – alternately in groups of 3 or 4, young-to-young workshops at Klejtrup After School (DK), at Evangeliska Folkhögskola in Vaasa (FL ), as well as the Emmaus Festival in Mariehamn (Å). The workshops provided the young with experience in planning, creative learning methods, collaboration, delegation of tasks, as well as experience in the front, as well as instruction and guidance of, and active audience.

Composer, musician and artistic director of Young Nordic Stars, Kenneth Dahl Knudsen, also held seminars for music teachers at Klejtrup Efterskole, as well as for the young musicians in the Young Nord ic Stars. The former focusing on music education of young talents, and the latter focusing on what is required as a professional musician. Her was given the young people opportunities to reflect on their future lives as professional musicians, and the possible opportunities to actively participate in discussions about what is required of them and such professions.