Kristian Blak

Keyboardist and composer Kristian Blak is the musical dean of the Faroe Islands (population: 47,000), that separate the Norwegian Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean. The owner of the Tutl Records label, Blak continues to balance solo work with collaborations with Spaelimenninir, a twin-fiddle dance-music group based in the Faroe Island capital city of Torshavn. A master composer, Blak wrote a 13-part suite, "Klaemint," that he recorded in the natural setting of a marine cave, Klaemintsgiogv. His album, Finiartut, was recorded with the musicians Tellu Virkkala and Ville Kangas from Finland, and Rasmus Lyberth of Greenland. In 1995, Blak recorded an album, Loaned Finery, with singer/guitarist Lennart Kullgren. Blak has also collaborated with Finland-based kora player Malang Cissokho, and Jan Garbarek's percussionist, Marilyn Mazur. In partnership with Birgir Enni, captain of the sailing vessel Norolysid, Blak hosts trips for musicians and audiences to the caves off the coast of the Faroe Islands.