Concerts Norway makes live music of high artistic quality accessible to everyone in the country as part of national cultural policies. Concerts Norway produces quality concert programs and arranges tours of these programs throughout Norway, both public concerts and school concerts. Concerts Norway acts as an adviser and coordinator in the implementation of Norway’s international music projects.

 

In carrying out these tasks we emphasize artistic quality, musical diversity, co-operation and innovation. Concerts are presented to the general public, to school children (about 9000 concerts) and pre-school children (about 600 concerts).

 

Concert Norways school concert scheme brings about meetings between young people and professional musicians. All pupils between 6 and 16 years of age will experience two different concerts representing a wide variety of musical expression. The overriding goal of the scheme is to create equality in school concert provision, regardless of location. The county municipalities have responsibility for the planning and implementation of parts of the school concert activities. Each individual school acts as arranger of the concerts.

Concerts Norway is a State organization under the Department of Church and Culture with an appointed board. 70 people are employed in the organization in Oslo. In 2007 the budget for the activity in Norway reached 155.000.000 NOK.

 

Concerts Norway co-operates with Nordic Network for School Concerts, Jeunesses Musicales International, and also operates a series of exchange and aid-programs supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; in South Africa, Palestine, India, Nepal, Pakistan and China.