Else Marie Pade wrote the choral work Völo-spa hoc est in 1956 and, as far as we know, it has not yet been performed.
On 22 September, the Danish National Vocal Ensemble will premiere the work as part of a concert that revolves around dreams and prophecies.
The text of Völo-spa hoc est is an excerpt from the old Norse poem The Prophecy of the Seeress in Latin translation. The Prophecy of the Seeress was written down in the 13th century after several hundred years of oral transmission, and provides a coherent description of the world view of the old Nordic religion, ending with the prediction of the end of the world, Ragnarok, which is included in Else Marie Pade's choral work.
The work is written in a personal, minimalist medieval style that Else Marie Pade developed in the mid-1950s – parallel to her pioneering work with electronic music.
The concert takes place Friday 22 September at 20.00 in DR Koncerthuset, Studio 2 in Copenhagen. The concert will be broadcast at DR P2 Monday 25 September 19:20.
Find more information about the concert here.
Find the score for Völo-spa hoc est here.