Contact info:
And Then There Were None
Contact form: Nordiska
La Boheme/ Salome /Tosca
Ciska Gomperts-Spanjaard
info@com-pris.nl
General requests
mathias.halvorsen@gmail.com
Mathias Halvorsen is a pianist known for his innovative approach to classical music, encompassing a wide range of projects, from chamber music and solo recitals to composition and conceptual reinterpretations of traditional repertoire. He studied with Professor Jiří Hlinka (2006–2010) in Oslo and Professor Gerald Fauth (2011–2013) in Leipzig.
In 2009, Halvorsen rediscovered the manuscript of Piano Concerto No. 5 by Norwegian composer Halfdan Cleve at the National Library of Norway in Oslo. He subsequently performed the work with the Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Gintaras Rinkevičius.
His latest album, featuring piano concertos by Ravel and Korngold (recorded with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra and conductor Otto Tausk), received widespread acclaim from outlets such as BBC Record Review, Trouw, and Deutschlandfunk Kultur.
Since 2019, Halvorsen has been touring with violinist Mathieu van Bellen in their unique arrangements of operas such as La Bohème, Tosca, and Salome. These ambitious projects condense the roles of soloists, choir, and orchestra into giant, uncut versions for violin and piano, with subtitles enhancing the theatrical experience. Salome premiered on May 24, 2019, at PODIUMfestival Esslingen, while La Bohème was recorded for Backlash Music, earning critical praise (BBC Music Magazine Album of the Month, The Sunday Times, Trouw, Klassekampen, among others).
Halvorsen’s diverse discography also includes an acclaimed recording of Bach’s The Well-Tempered Clavier on prepared piano and On Goldberg Variations (2020), a collaborative project with Jan Martin Gismervik. The second installment in the series, On Palestrina, is scheduled for release in 2025.
In 2022, he premiered the solo project Lost in Beethoven at Beethovenfest Bonn—a groundbreaking, interactive musical labyrinth constructed from Beethoven’s complete piano sonatas.
A founding member of the critically acclaimed group LightsOut, Halvorsen has performed concerts in total darkness since 2010. He is also a composer, and in 2023, his opera adaptation of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None premiered to great acclaim. Norway’s NRK described the work as “a criminally powerful Agatha Christie opera.” Other projects, such as The Square and The Transfigurator 3000, focus on audience interaction through alternative notation systems like movement and wooden cubes, inviting audiences to compose in real time.
Halvorsen currently serves as Artistic Director of PODIUM – Fartein Valen International Music Festival alongside Nikolai Matthews.