NMU’s music department will host a performance of Beethoven and Banjos. The ensemble is composed of members of Decoda, Carnegie Hall’s affiliate ensemble, soprano Mary Bonhag, traditional musician Laurel Premo and Finnish folk duo Aallotar. Beethoven and Banjos is on a U.P. tour. Its NMU performance will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 30, in Reynolds Recital Hall. Admission is free.

The music will be a direct celebration of the U.P. landscape, culture, and heritage, according to artistic director and U.P. native Evan Premo.

Decoda is a chamber ensemble comprised of virtuoso musicians, entrepreneurs and passionate advocates of the arts. Based in New York City, the group creates “innovative performances and engaging projects with partners around the world.” Their projects have reached audiences in schools, hospitals, prisons and concert halls. Recent travels have included Abu Dhabi, Iceland, Japan, Mexico, Germany, China and Switzerland. Members of Decoda who will perform at NMU include Evan Premo playing the double bass, Meena Bhasin on viola, Hamilton Berry on cello and Anna Elashvili on violin.

Aallotar is a transatlantic collaboration featuring American violinist Sara Pajunen and Finnish accordionist Teija Niku, whose families once lived within hours of each other in the western regions of Finland. Using instruments traditional to Finnish and Finnish-American folk music and singing in both English and Finnish, the music of Aallotar pays tribute to their respective cultures