Førde Folk Music Festival was this year on Songlines`list of the 25 best world music festivals in the world. Being the by far largest folk music festival in Norway, Førde gathers an audience of approximately 30 000 people, which is quite impressing for this little town on the West Coast of Norway. This year the festival focuses on music and oppression with headliners such as the Kurdic/Iranian Ensemble Kamkars, Swedish Wäsen, Norway’s own queen of the Hardanger Fiddle Annbjørg Lien and Orchestra Chekara Flamenca. Førde Folk Music Festivals takes place from Juli 8th to 11th.

Riddu Riđđu Festival in Kåfjord, North Norway is an international indigenous festival featuring an extensive program with about 200 artists and 3,000 visitors representing different indigenous and other peoples from across the globe. Headliners at this year’s festival include Mari Boine, Wimme and Riddu-lávdi . The festival takes place from July 21st -25th.

Telemarkfestivalen in Bø has always had a solid mix of Norwegian, Scandinavian and international artists. The festival has often invited artists from the Celtic traditions. Some of this year’s artists include fiddlers Knut Buen, Hallvard T. Bjørgum and Synnøve S. Bjørset, Scandinavian artists Helene Blum & Harald Haugaard Kvintet (DM), Nordic (SE), Hekla Stålstrenga (NO) and Kiran Ahluwalia from Punjab. Telemarkfestivalen takes place from July 22nd- 25th.

Jørn Hilme-stemnet mostly concentrates on Norwegian folk music of various kinds. Among the headliners we find Gjermund Larsen Trio, Frode Fjellheim and Jan Beitohaugen Granli. The festival takes place from July 25th to August 1st.

Mela is a multicultural festival taking place in Oslo August 6th to 8th.

Kalottspel is a festival for Traditional Music and dance in the Arctic, engaging people from the northern areas of Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia and beyond. Kalottspel is a folk music and dance festival which takes place in Målselv in the county of Troms. The festival builds on long and rich traditions in the area and was first set up in 1970. Kalottspel was arranged on a biennial basis from 1984 and since 2004 this has been a yearly happening. This makes Kalottspel one of Norway’s oldest festivals within its genre and we are the only festival in the North of Norway with traditional music and dance as the main profile. The festival takes place from August 10th-15th.

Nordsjøfestivalen i Farsund is an international musicfestival which focuses on the traditional music found around The North Sea. The festival is a meetingplace for musicians who represent and develop the traditions from their areas and cultures. In this way the festival is a sort of melting-pot in which different musical and cultural expressions meet, pleasing both musicians and their audience.Nordsjøfestivalen i Farsund engage musicians from Scotland, England, the Orkneys, the Faroe Islands, Denmark, Sweden, the Shetlands, Ireland – providing an international vibe to our small community this weekend in the end of summer. The festival takes place from August 26th-29th.

Osafestivalen is arranged at Voss October 28th – 30th, with focus on music after virtuoso violinist Ole Bull and hardanger fiddler Sigbjørn Bernhoft Osa.

Oslo World Music Festival takes place on November 2nd-7th.