Halvor Melien

INTRODUCTION

Halvor F. Melien (baritone) is a Norwegian concert and opera singer, working in Europe. He studied at the Norwegian Academy of Music. In 2015/16 he was part of the soloist ensemble at The Norwegian National Opera in Oslo. He has a broad concert repertoire, spanning from the 17th century till today, and has particularly devoted time to Bach’s music.

He has established himself as one of Europe’s most sought-after concert baritones.

RECENT AND FUTURE ENGAGEMENTS

During the 22/23 and 23/24 seasons Halvor has, among other things, sung Brahms’ Requiem with the Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, Bach’s St. John Passion with Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion with Bachkoor Holland, and Monteverdi’s Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda and several other projects with Barokkanerne Norwegian Baroque Ensemble. He has also premiered new pieces by Lars Skoglund and Trond Reinholdtsen and released a CD with songs by Kjell Habbestad together with Marianne Beate Kielland and Nils Anders Mortensen.

Among his most recent and upcoming engagements are Habbestad’s Mostrasuite with The Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Bach’s Christmas Oratorio BWV 248 [1-3] with the Norwegian Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra, Bach’s St. Matthew Passion w. Bachkoor Holland, Bach’s Mass in B minor at the Bergen Cathedral; concerts at Hardanger Musikkfest, world premieres of pieces by Lisa Streich and Øyvind Mæland, and several performances and recordings of Eivind Buene’s Schubert Lounge.

BIOGRAPHY

Halvor has worked with all Norwegian symphony orchestras and with ensembles such as BBC Philharmonic, Les Talens Lyriques, Concertgebouw Kamerorkest, Musica Saeculorum, Taverner Consort, Danish National Orchestra, Slovenian Philharmonic, Ho Chi Minh City Symphony Orchestra, Academia Montis Regalis, Oslo Sinfonietta, Trondheimsolistene, The Norwegian Chamber Orchestra, Barokkanerne and several others.

Halvor appears as a soloist on several CD recordings, including Kurt Weill’s Die Sieben Todsünden with Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, John Frandsen’s Requiem with Danish National Orchestra, Bent Sørensen’s St. Matthew Passion with The Norwegian Soloists’ Choir and Ensemble Allegria and Barokkanerne’s Schwingt freudig euch empor.

He has also worked extensively with new music and has premiered pieces written for him by Ørjan Matre, Eivind Buene, Øyvind Mæland, and others.

The German art song genre is important for Halvor. He is currently working on several Lied projects, performing music by Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Mahler and Webern.