Hi, I am Ida - a location independent, professional violinist from Sweden

Hi folks!

So a good friend of mine in the crypto-jungle told me about this thing called Steemit, and it sounded like something I had to check out. Turns out it is this amazing new community where people write good stuff and share it with other people in a totally new way... I was like, WOW, I'd really like to become a part of this thing (VERY WOW), to contribute to it's ever-growing bank of knowledge and to get enriched by the writings of others!

There - introducing myself; a 29-year old professional musician violinist from Sweden with a love for travels and people. This is my second attempt at a proper introduction, as my first one was a bit every which way, so... here we go!

I play the violin for a living. That means I play concerts in many countries in Europe with various bands and orchestras, and alone. But when I say ‘playing for a living’, I really mean it in the wider sense; music is not only what I do to make money for food and roof over my head - it is my way of living, it is what most of my life centers around.

At the moment I'm kinda location-independent; I travel to places where I have concerts or other work, and to places I like. I sometimes go busking, which gives me a great freedom to travel wherever I want without much of an economy. At the moment I am in Slovenia, where I am playing gigs and teaching, like for example in this international world music camp from July where I was a musical mentor; http://www.floatingcastlefestival.com/#!ethno-histeria-orchestra/c1yyk

I play A LOT of different genres - am an educated baroque violinist (classical music) from the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, and thus regularly perform with various baroque orchestras across Europe. I am also a folk musician specialising in Scandinavian traditional music, English/Celtic folk, Balkan folk, and French ‘balfolk’. I play country-rock fiddle and a little bit of jazz, and I do free improvisation and pop.

I love to experiment with new things and concepts. ‘Genre’ is a term which is useful in helping us getting a reference point when addressing music - but it should never be allowed to restrict us in our imagination. To illustrate my point:

A normal weekend for me can consist of giving a workshop in folk music with teenagers on Friday, doing a gig in a rock club with a band on Saturday, and a Mozart concert in a church on Sunday. And that is just the way I like it to be :)

Here is an example of a project I was doing, with the Slovenian multi-genre ensemble Symbolic Orchestra:

One of my absolute favourite things on earth, is meeting with musicians from different places and play music together. We might not know each other from before and might not even have a language in common - but the music communicates all (well, most) of what needs to be said!
Imagine, for example, a youngish swede like me, used to modern city life, meeting with an older person from some rural part of Serbia. Age, language, culture and living conditions are all barriers that would normally hinder most interaction - until I shakingly dare to take up a ‘kolo’ (dance tune) from the area. In that moment, their eyes lighten up! From then on, communication - despite all of our differences - is nothing but easy. And sometimes in these musical interactions, all involved enter into a state of pure bliss.

It’s truly an incredible thing, this gift called music, and the bridges it creates from one soul to another...

Now, I'll throw you a couple more examples of my music... enjoy!

Here is me playing some country-fiddle with the great band Fed Horses:

With my own line-up Ida and Other Bears I present a wide range of folk music from across Europe in modern arrangement. Here is our version of the Swedish tune Tiskens Klagan/Tisken's Lament (arrangement inspired by Etno HISTeRIA):

See you around folks, and watch this space for updates on things in particular and general on the wonderful subject of music!