About us

Emma Reid • fiddle
Ebba Jacobsson • vocals
Johanna Bölja Hertzberg • vocals
Alicia Björnsdotter Abrams • fiddle and viola

Ditt Ditt Darium works with two sung and two bowed voices: singers Johanna Bölja Hertzberg and Ebba Jacobsson and fiddlers Emma Reid and Alicia Björnsdotter Abrams. The Swedish provinces of Hälsingland and Bohuslän, England’s Northumberland and Welsh Gower are all represented in the backgrounds of the members and the repertoire of the group. The four voices make for a stark contrast between the raw lure of a unison melody and a complex weave of four intertwining parts. Melodies are stories, words are rhythm.

Ditt Ditt Darium played together for the first time in 2003 and have since toured the US and Sweden and appeared on both American and Swedish radio and TV. In November 2007 they released their debut album, 'Ifrån främmande land'. The simple line-up has proved very versatile and the repertoire spans from polkas to drinking songs, from swinging to lyrical. For a long time Ditt Ditt Darium has had a particular love of songs connected to coasts and seas:

Music that travels. Music for travelling.

Reviews

Album reviews:

The album 'Ifrån främmande land' featured in the BBC Radio 3 Late Junction favourites of 2007. The album is also included in the 2007 favourites list for Swedish releases, all genres, in the Swedish newspaper 'Östran'.

"The fiddles weave a complex tracery around the voices, beautiful and decorating, never intrusive, simultaneously strong and delicate. At times there's an intimacy to it all that makes listening feel almost like an intrusion. All but two of the songs are in Swedish, but given the sound of the language, that's fine by me. The playing and singing are immaculate even when they use "microtones", utterly deliberate notes just off the normal scale. There's a lot of sheer charm to it too, as when "The Gower Wassail" is sung in a delightful Swedish accent. And then there are those gently heart-warming harmonies... Yes, I liked it." - FiddleOn Magazine

"...a new major folk music group is on its way" - Dala-Demokraten (translated from Swedish)

A selection of comments from our gig book written by members of our audiences:

Acorn Coffe Bar, Chicago, 24th September 2005
"The beautiful arrangements, harmonizations, and ensemble made for a truly special sound - filled the room but truly intimate as well. Thanks for coming!"
"Most hauntingly beautiful music."
"It was a wonderful performance - your enthusiasm was infectious, your interaction entertaining - memorable. Thank you for the music, history and geography lessons, too."

Chicago, 25th September 2005
"Thanks for coming to our community and sharing yourselves - your music, song, dance and joy. I've especially enjoyed your workshops, where you showed not only notes and steps, but an approach. An approach that we can apply to many situations, and so have grown by more than simply a new tune or two."

Landsdowne Folk Club, PA, 29th September 2005
"You are wonderful. Your music drew me into another world - I was mesmerized."