By the time Norway’s iconic boys choir known as Sølvguttene were singing their annual Christmas Eve concert on national TV, other choirs and entertainers had been drawing in large audiences for weeks. Christmas concerts have become big business.
During the five weeks leading up to Christmas, Norwegians collectively spent NOK 86 million (USD 10 million) on Christmas concert tickets, reports newspaper Dagens Næringsliv (DN). For entertainers like Sissel Kyrkejebø, Trine Rein and Hanne Krogh, Christmas has become a highly lucrative season indeed. Others are cashing in as well.
“We have thousands of concerts with local artists of all types all over the country now, some where the public just buys a ticket at the door,” Trygve Sundbø, the concert tour manager for Krogh who’s also her husband, told DN. He noted that concerts by popular artists that are heavily advertised in advance are just the “tip of the iceberg” in the concert business.
After CD sales dipped with the advent of streaming services, artists have turned to live appearances to make more money. Various top Norwegian artists mounted 13 major nationwide tours this year, and most all the concerts enjoyed strong ticket sales and even sold out. Artists like Kyrkjebø have grown out of churches as a venue and now sell out large arenas like Oslo Spektrum or the Oslo Konserthus.
newsinenglish.no staff
