Eirik Krokfjord






 

“Too good for us”

Lars Raastad, Harde Mottak

eirik_krokfjord-24.jpg

 
 

 

“Perfectly cast as Scarpia, an unforgettable portrayal of a fascist… Formidably interesting”

Matti edén, sydsvenskan

 

“Sings Scarpia powerfully, with lots of darkness… Expertly portrayed sadism”

Lars-Erik Larsson, skånska dagbladet

 

“Eirik Krokfjord’s Scarpia grows into an awfully sinister dictator… What an achievement!”

Sune Johannesson, Kristianstadsbladet

 

“Scarpia is played absolutely brilliantly by the Norwegian Eirik Krokfjord… So fucking good”

Claes Gylling, Radio RFSL

 

“Never really heard of him”

Innherred.no

 

“Blew the audience members’ hats off [in The Messiah]… Absolutely incredible”

Ellen marie stølan, iLevanger.no

 

“Very powerful interpretation of King David… A joy to watch”

Anders Olai Neerland Kruse, Scenekunst.no

 

“The best and the most memorable… brought genuine emotion [to Bach’s St. John’s Passion]”

Jack Dhainaut, Bachtrack.com

 

“Highly expressive [in Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610]... a pleasure to listen to”

Ståle Wikshåland, Dagbladet

 

“I am sure he is very good, probably”

Akers Avis Groruddalen

 

Eirik is me.

I am him.

That is why you are here.

 
Photo taken by Øistein Norum Monsen - back in 2014. Yeah.

Right.
So.
I.

Am a dramatic baritone from Lørenskog, Norway, specializing in the fach of Heldenbariton. As a concert soloist I have worked with Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Accademia Bizantina, Capella Vitalis Berlin, Orquesta Sinfónica de Michoacán, Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, The Norwegian Soloists’ Choir, The Norwegian Wind Ensemble, and numerous times with Barokkanerne Norwegian Baroque Orchestra. This has led to collaborations with esteemed conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Jorge Parodi, Alexander Humala, Alessandro Tampieri, Grete Pedersen, Ari Rasilainen, and Rolf Gupta. They can deny it all they want.
On the opera stage, I have so far portrayed - to mention a few - Donner in Wagner’s Das Rheingold, Scarpia in Puccini’s Tosca, Gianni Schicchi in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi, Nick Shadow in The Rake’s Progress, David in Ståle Kleiberg’s David & Bathsheba and Leporello in Mozart's Don Giovanni. I also appeared in The Norwegian National Theatre’s main stage production of Strindberg’s A Dream Play, I performed in Rom for Dans’ dance theatre production The Underland, and In 2022 I started touring with my own production of Schubert’s Winterreise alongside pianist Jo Dalene supplementing it with mine and Ulf Nilsen’s chanson and aria extravaganza Brel Canto - as well as me in 2023 assuming the mantle of being the frontman of the legendary Norwegian funeral doom pioneers Funeral.

I have also performed at the Brazilian early music festival Semana de Música Antiga, and I suppose I could (and should) boast particular expertise as a soloist in the field of early music. Said experience includes works by Rameau, Mazzocchi and Theile as well as Bach, Händel and Telemann and many more besides, and while I am now working my way into the dramatic baritone repertoire I am still comfortable performing anything from renaissance monody to contemporary monodrama; the latter category best exemplified by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies’ Eight Songs for a Mad King and Dominick Argento’s The Andrée Expedition. My experience with 20th century music also includes works by notable composers such as György Ligeti and Kaija Saariaho - and Alfred Janson, enjoying the experience of recording his gorgeous Sonnet no. 76 in 2018. I have also been entrusted with world premieres of new music on a number of occasions - most notably with Ensemble Aksiom performing works by Martin Ødegaard.

I hold a Master’s Degree in performance from The Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, and worked with Yngve Søberg for a few years before I started studying with Luis Ledesma in 2020 - he described me as "one of the most interesting dramatic baritones I have ever worked with," which I chose to interpret as a compliment. Since 2023 I have been working with Brian Jauhiainen, who has so far said nothing.
On my musicianship, Johan Nicolai Mohn of Barokkanerne described me as "an excellent singer with extraordinary expressive power." Said Jon Fredrik Hjemli of Nivalis Barokk, I am "a soloist with a lot of musical creativity, [who] expresses well - crucial when you perform baroque music." Lars Henrik Johansen of CasalEmilio concurred, stating that I possess "a rare ability to combine professionalism and good singing technique with artistic exploration (...) I have however never heard him choose musical interpretations solely for the sake of flashy effects; his interpretational alternatives are always the fruits of a serious and well-founded process." All these statements, as well as everything else on this site, should be taken at face fucking value.

 

 
 

“The best and the most memorable was Eirik Krokfjord as a stentorian Pilate, and I was so pleased that he (...) brought some genuine emotion to the recitative text.”
Jack Dhainaut, Bachtrack.com


"There's been many magnificent performances of [O Holy Night] in Grorud church from several of the country's leading singers. But the performance that baritone Eirik Krokfjord delivered on Christmas Eve might well be the best of them all!"
Rolf E. Wulff, Akers Avis Groruddalen

“The only unaccompanied piece here is [Janson]’s setting of Shakespeare’s Sonnet no. 76, “Why is my verse so barren of new pride?”. The text is gently and beautifully declaimed by the baritone Eirik Krokfjord.”
Richard Hanlon, MusicWeb-International.com

“Baritone Eirik Krokfjord made an excellent interpretation of the Norwegian prime minister [Christian] Michelsen. He has a great voice with numerous qualities, and proved visually strong in the role - he was a fulcrum in the performance, his long introductory presentation aria was exquisite.”
Henning Høholt, Kulturkompasset.com

“Baritone Eirik Krokfjord (Michelsen) was my hero with excellent phrasing, good egality and impeccable diction, for instance in the ‘Fortress aria’.”
Terje Refsnes, Moss Avis

 
 

“[The direction] works well for the most part – special kudos to Eirik Krokfjord as Scarpia and Anne Birgitte Bouwhuis Røkke as Spoletta, who clearly brought out the sadists behind the state-controlled violence.
Eirik Krokfjord sings Scarpia with a powerful baritone voice and lots and lots of darkness.”
Lars-Erik Larsson, Skånska Dagbladet

"Eirik Krokfjord as police chief Scarpia is a dynamic hit. The Norwegian excels on stage; with sharp body language and elaborate mime - equal parts cinematic clichés and personal variations - he draws an unforgettable portrait of a powerful fascist, a predator in human form.
It is perfectly typecast and interesting beyond compare. And it so nice when Tosca drives the knife into him!
Scarpia's aria at the end of act one becomes a massive highlight.”
Matti Edén, Sydsvenskan

"The heaviest roles are carried by three characters - the opera singer Tosca (Kine Sandtrø), the artist Mario Cavaradossi (Markus Pettersson) and the police chief Scarpia (Eirik Krokfjord). What efforts this trio puts in! In the singing as well as in the acting. (...)
Eirik Krokfjord's Scarpia grows minute by minute (...) [he] eventually becomes a terribly scary dictator who has only two things on his agenda; himself and power. Warm applause!
The duet, or perhaps rather the duel, between Scarpia and Tosca was one of the highest points of the performance."
Sune Johannesson, Norra Skåne/Kristianstadsbladet

“[Krokfjord] delivers a very strong interpretation of the role [of King David]. Considering he has performed Peter Maxwell Davies’ Eight Songs for a Mad King, I seem to be able to see a notable similarity in the two interpretations. It is a joy to watch him portray David as a semi-maniacal, egotistical dandy.”
Anders Olai Neerland Kruse, Scenekunst.no

 

Wow! That was a lot of opinions. How would you like to arrive at exactly the same opinions all by yourself?

Call the best.

Hire me.

All the best,

Eirik