THE great thing about Salisbury Arts Festival is the chance to experience something you would never otherwise see, and the opportunity to see a man play instruments made out of ice was too intriguing a concept to pass up. But Terje Isungset’s Ice Music is definitely a tale of two halves.

As he emerged on stage I was disappointed to note there was not a single piece of ice visible. Isungset played drums, bells, hanging wooden sticks and stones in his Tribute to Nature.

At times you found yourself caught up in the rhythmic sounds of Norway’s natural elements, but at points I felt his performance lacked cohesion and amounted to noise rather than music.

I was feeling a little underwhelmed after the first half, but all was forgiven when the ice appeared in the second half.

There was something quite magical about the sounds Isungset could make with just frozen water, and with clever lighting and projections on a screen behind him, his music came alive.

This was in no small part thanks to the beautiful voice of Lena Nymark, who joined him on stage. Nymark’s vocals had nowhere to hide, but her singing was crystal clear and pure.

The second half was mesmerising and beautiful and I felt like we had been transported to the Norwegian fjords.

COREY ROSS