Furuholmen, Magne
Date of birth November, 1, 1962
Place of birth: Manglerud (Oslo, Norway)
Height: 186 sm (6'1")
Hair: blonde
Eyes: blue
Father: Kaare Furuholmen (died in 1967), musician
Mother: Annelise, teacher
Sister: Line
Family: married to Heidi Rydjord (since 8.08.1992).
Two sons: Thomas Vincent (20.04.1990)
and Phillip August (october, 1993)

Magne Furuholmen was born on November 1, 1962. His mother is a teacher and his father was a musician. The family lived in Manglerud in Oslo. His father, Kaare Furuholmen, played trumpet in the dance band, "Bent So*lve's Orchestra." "Bent So*lve" was the name of Magne's stuffed toy, like a teddy bear. When Magne was only 5 years old, the plane that transported the band crashed outside Drammen (a town about 45 minutes south of Oslo), and Magne's father perished. His mother, Anne Lise, married again after a while, and the family's children consists now of one sister and two brothers, besides Magne himself
Magne's grandfather was also deeply involved in music. There aren't so many young boys who've gotten to take over their grandfather's electric guitar, as Magne did. Both his mother and mother's father have steadfastly and devotedly supported Magne's endeavors to master music's mysteries. They have known that it is in the family's blood. In spite of his father's tragedy, Magne says today that he has had a secure and good upbringing. He's had a good relationship with his stepfather, and an especially close relationship with his mother. When he was 10, he met Paal Waaktaar, and they immediately became good friends. Their common interest in music played a relatively minor role until Magne entered 7th grade. It was then he began listening to such people as Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and the Doors. Their total engagement (in their music) was a challenge. Magne didn't manage any longer to maintain only a temperate relationship to music. He had to make a choice, and he chose to deepen his relationship with music, even though, in many ways, this meant taking his leave from a social life with his peer group. Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix didn't completely fit in with the classroom or the apartment buildings in Manglerud. Magne became a kind of outsider. He let his hair grow and became a 'hippie' at a time when it wasn't 'in' at all to be a 'hippie.' When Magne was 15 years old, his family moved to Asker. This involved a veritable culture shock for Magne. .
Magne Furuholmen attended Asker People's University in his home district. He became interested in music at a young age, and was musically influenced as a teenager by The Doors and Jimi Hendrix. During his school years, football (soccer) and music were his main hobbies. In the middle 70s, he joined up with Paal Waaktaar to form what would become the locally known band, Bridges (whose members finally jelled in 1977), which consisted of Magne (guitar, vocals, keyboard), Paal (guitar, lead vocal, drums), Viggo Bondi (bass guitar), and Oeystein Jevanord (drums). Previous to Bridges and from the time they were 10 - 12 years old, Paal and Magne had been in other bands, such as Spider Empire, Thala and the Layas Blues Band, Black Day and Black Sapphire. Bridges turned out to be their most serious band, and the quartet managed to compose, finance, record and release their first album, "Fakkeltog" ("Torchlight Procession"). Listen to the final track - if you can find it - called "September". A lot of self-promotion and hard work by the members resulted in 600 out of 1000 albums being sold. Bridges went on to give their first concert at a club called Chateau Neuf in Oslo on May 27, 1977. They were not happy with their performance, however, during which they had some technical problems. They met with somewhat more success as the warmup band for KjÜett, Oslo's rising New Wave celebrities, at the venerable Dovrehallen, where the dance crowd waltzed solemnly to their introspective melodies. After finishing the demos for the second album, things changed a bit, however; when a lot of their equipment was stolen and it took time to replace it, the members slowly began to grow apart. The album was set aside and Paal and Magne went on to purchase new instruments and began recording on their own. Their work together was quite different than that with Bridges. An example was one song they recorded, titled, "All the Planes Come in on the Quiet." It was a very electric production, which had both members on synth guitar and keyboards. At this time, a romantic post-punk movement was taking place in London. While Paal played the role of 'bohemian artist,' Magne worked as a security guard for the Henie-Onstad Museum just outside of Oslo, and put aside his salary toward financing the planned trip to London. It was the summer of 1981, and although they had recovered their stolen Bridges equipment and recorded their second album, "Poem" (whose album cover was designed by Magne) things took a more serious turn, as both Paal and Magne had their sights set on London. Viggo and Oeystein did not have the same hunger for success. They were not willing to bet everything on making it in the music business. Bridges played together for the last time, and in November 1982, Paal and Magne - along with 10,000 Norwegian crowns, a lot of self confidence, and a dream - took off for London. Bridges was no more.

The story of a-ha actually began at that moment. Magne Furuholmen is one of the members of that band. ( For more information about a-ha, go to one of the a-ha web sites - i.e. via the German a-ha Navigator.)

From 1994 to 1998, a-ha took a break, and Magne dedicated himself to his visual art. Painting had always been his first passion, ever since childhood. His first art exhibition opened in 1989. Magne painted pictures and created sculptures, and his artworks have been exhibited worldwide. In 1994, he wrote the film score with his Norwegian friend, Kjetil Bjerkestrand for the film, "Ti kniver i hjertet" ("Cross My Heart"). Together with his friend and under their own label "Timbersound", Magne recorded an album called "Hotel Oslo" of the music they composed for the Norwegian TV series of the same name. In December of 1998, a new soundtrack by Timbersound for the Norwegian movie "1732 Hotten" (also released internationally with English subtitles as "Bloody Sunday"), which was very successful in Europe. Also in 1999, he helped his friend and a-ha bandmate, Paal Waaktar, record the third album of his own band, Savoy (formed with his wife, Lauren) called "Mountains of Time." Listen to the song, "Bottomless Pit", in which Magne plays clavichord.
Since autumn of 1998 till begining of 2000 Magne took part in recordings of new a-ha album "Minor Earth, Major sky", which was released on 17th of april. It was an impressive comeback of a-ha. Album had huge success, as well as started in November of 2000 a-ha's tour.

Family. Magne Furuholmen and his high school sweetheart, Heidi Rydjord, were married in August of 1992. Magne and Heidi have been together more than 20 years already, and started out as high school sweethearts.
Magne loves his Family, protects them from the hordes and above all tries his hardest to be at home. An interesting interview once declared that while on tour,Magne sent his children letters and drawing via Fax to ensure they wouldn't forget him and it is no wonder that on the last tours Magne seemed more than a little dissatisfied. Magne Furuholmen was never ashamed to say how much he was in love, and show that men were capable of great feeling, and has proven that some relationships can last through the sometimes great upheavals of life.

Magne Furuholmen has always been an enigma, hiding first behind a band (a-ha) clown facade and then amidst physical changes - a morrisonesque beard and weight gain to cast off sex symbol chains, no longer a 'Lizard King', but a more serious persona. To many he has always been easy going, 'The Joker', while to others he has been more a brooding, fiery volcano ready to erupt at any moment. Now, he is standing forward to let everyone know how it really is and was, uncovering some dark untruths behind his involvement with a-ha and shedding light on the side of him that has brought about a successful and spirited pictoral artist. He is not so much a 'Jekyll & Hyde', but merely a man caught between his love of music and his hatred for the music business.
DAGBLADET 13.5.95