Laura Ellestad plays traditional Hardanger fiddle music from Valdres, Norway. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Traditional Music Performance from the Ole Bull Academy in Voss (2008–2012) and a master's degree in Performance with Thesis from the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo (2012–2014). She has studied with some of the foremost Hardanger fiddlers and tradition bearers in Norway, including Tore Bolstad, Jan Beitohaugen Granli, Leif Rygg, and Håkon Høgemo.
Laura grew up in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She received the Hardanger Fiddle Association of America’s Ole Bull Scholarship in 2005, and in 2009 she received Torleiv Bolstads minnestipend, a memorial scholarship awarded to young fiddlers who play in the Valdres tradition. In 2014 she became the first North American Hardanger fiddler to advance to the elite A class at Landskappleiken.
She has worked extensively as both a performer and fiddle teacher, and has led instruction and given concerts in Norway, Canada, and the US. Laura is also a popular dance fiddler and plays regularly for dance practices and workshops. She is currently a Lecturer at the Department of Traditional Art and Traditional Music at the University of South-Eastern Norway, Campus Rauland.
Laura grew up in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. She received the Hardanger Fiddle Association of America’s Ole Bull Scholarship in 2005, and in 2009 she received Torleiv Bolstads minnestipend, a memorial scholarship awarded to young fiddlers who play in the Valdres tradition. In 2014 she became the first North American Hardanger fiddler to advance to the elite A class at Landskappleiken.
She has worked extensively as both a performer and fiddle teacher, and has led instruction and given concerts in Norway, Canada, and the US. Laura is also a popular dance fiddler and plays regularly for dance practices and workshops. She is currently a Lecturer at the Department of Traditional Art and Traditional Music at the University of South-Eastern Norway, Campus Rauland.