Always and Never the Same

Collaboration with Ensemble neoN and Benedicte Maurseth.

Ensemble neoN premieres Benedicte Maurseth’s Always and never the same, featuring the composer on the Harding fiddle.

The piece explores the way both folk music and contemporary minimalism evolve by the use of repetitions with constant variations.

Live digital animations by Simone Hooymans, inspired by Norwegian nature and the traditional rosemaling (decorative rose-painting), flow in the background.

Concert at ILIOS Festival 2026 in Harstad.
Galleri Nord-Norge:
Søndag 01. februar, kl. 16:00-17:00 

Two concerts at Ultima Festival 2023 in Oslo.
Henie Onstad kunstsenter:
Lørdag 16. september, kl. 14:00–16:15 

Deichman Bjørvika:
Lørdag 23. september kl. 12:00–12:30

Stunningly Beautiful and Visually Captivating!

The festival opened with a strong start with Vokal Nord, and after a weekend filled with magical moments, Ensemble neoN truly put the crown on the work. One hour of pure magic—an interplay of beautiful, unfamiliar music and, not least, a striking visual experience.

The audience was pulled back and forth between dreamy immersion in the music and childlike fascination with the visuals projected on the back wall. There were many impressions to take in at once—each of them exciting and beautiful.

Naturally, we were a fair distance away from what one might call conventional music, yet everything felt harmonious, grand, and beautiful. Small motifs gathered momentum and gradually grew larger. Within these motifs, new themes appeared and slowly took over. In this way, the work travelled through a full hour—one theme giving way to the next: some harmonic, beautiful, and delicate, while other sequences had rougher edges, keeping listeners from becoming lulled into pure pleasantness.

The back wall—the large white wall straight ahead as you enter the gallery—was transformed into a visually beautiful fairytale world. Elegant animated images danced across the entire surface, in a way that felt as repetitive as the music being performed. Sometimes the visuals were summery and light; other times they carried a sharper expression—yet always beautiful.

There was clearly a stroke of genius in it all. All the musicians were dressed in white, and the tables where the instruments lay ready were also covered in white. When the visuals on the back wall expanded just enough to touch the musicians as well, they became part of the visual experience themselves.

Returning to the musical experience: in many ways it felt two-sided. There were long stretches where you could let your thoughts travel and drift away—repetition becomes a safe path to follow. Then, suddenly, unexpected sounds would appear and awaken curiosity. What was that? Where did that sound come from, and what created it? Again and again, you were gently pulled out of your dreams, curiosity taking over for a while—before being led back into a beautiful musical dreamscape.

Throughout it all, the music was held together by Benedicte Maurseth’s Hardanger fiddles. Anyone who believes the Hardanger fiddle cannot sound soft and enchanting is mistaken—and that was clearly proven on this Sunday evening.

If there has ever been a moment when Ilios has embodied both the unexpected and the eccentric, and at the same time something overwhelmingly beautiful, it was this evening. A truly wonderful experience.

Review Harstad Tidene 02.02.2026

Aurora Records is proud to present a new album by Ensemble neoN and Benedicte Maurseth. The album project, Always and Never the Same, will be released on Aurora Records on January 30, 2026. The music is the result of a collaboration between Ensemble neoN and Hardanger fiddle player and composer Benedicte Maurseth.

The first version of the work was written in 2023 and presented as an audiovisual production at the Ultima Festival, featuring live video animation by Simone Hooymans. For this new recording, the work has been revised and recomposed. Hooymans’ art remains an integral part of the piece and naturally also informs the album cover.

Of particular importance to Maurseth is the exploration of repetition and the many variations that can evolve from a single theme. In close interaction with Ensemble neoN, Maurseth has composed a new work in which the suggestive power of repetition is a central driving force. Together, Maurseth and neoN have explored how the qualities of the Hardanger fiddle can be transferred to an expanded ensemble, with its diverse rhythmic structures, tonalities, and sonic palette. The soloist holds a vital place in the Norwegian folk music tradition, and the work creates space for the individual character of each musician.

The idea of folk music as a constantly evolving form—carrying both past and present—is also reflected in the visual art of Simone Hooymans. Her work is characterized by a form of naïvism, rooted in a desire to invite the audience into an unfolding of emotions, atmospheres, and imagined worlds. In Hooymans’ animations, different fantasy worlds are often built from simple elements, alternating between moments of continuity and extreme contrast.

The material is composed and presented by Benedicte Maurseth (TONO). All music has been developed and arranged by Maurseth in collaboration with Ensemble neoN and Jørgen Træen.

The track titles are excerpts of fragments found in early Buddhist sutras, gāthās, and related texts, published in the book buena nada by Hendl H. Mirra in connection with the XXIII Bienal de Arte Paiz in Guatemala in 2023.

https://www.aurorarecords.no/alwaysandneverthesame