Laura Ellestad is a Hardanger fiddle player, researcher, and educator. She holds a BA in traditional music from the Ole Bull Academy (2012), an MA in performance with thesis from the Norwegian Academy of Music (2014), and a PhD in performance practice from the Norwegian Academy of Music (2023).
Ellestad’s research draws on theory and methodology from the fields of ethnomusicology, anthropology, sociology, migration studies, cultural studies, performance studies, and media studies. Her research interests include investigating identity, ethnicity, migration, and gender issues through the lens of traditional/folk music, in both historical and contemporary perspectives. As an active folk music performer, she also integrates practice-based knowledge and perspectives into her research.
Responsibilities
- Associate professor (100%)
- Programme coordinator for the one-year programme Norwegian Folk Music / Norwegian Folk Art for International Students
- Programme coordinator for Bachelorstudiet i folkemusikk
- Course coordinator for Folkemusikk og samfunn
- Main instrument lessons, Hardanger fiddle and fiddle
- Supervision of BA and MA students
- Coordinator of the Erasmus+ project TUNE
- Responsible for internationalisation at the Department of Traditional Arts and Traditional Music
Competences
Hardanger fiddle performance, folk music history, music and identity, practice-based research