Rolf Lislevand
Although Rolf Lislevand established his credentials in the 20th century as a gifted and fairly traditional Baroque guitarist and lutenist, in the early 21st century, he has tended to avoid presenting the music he performs authentically, asserting that to reproduce the music the way it was originally heard, and intended to be heard, is not actually possible. He has thus attempted to give Baroque compositions a 21st century sound, often imparting a modern or even jazzy character to the music. He has typically performed both solo works and chamber/vocal works, the latter with his Ensemble Kapsberger. The instruments typically used by the group in concerts and on recordings have included harp and voice (Arianna Savall, daughter of Jordi Savall, filling both roles), nyckelharpa, and chitarra battente, a 12-string Baroque guitar. Lislevand has spent a considerable amount of his career as a member of Jordi Savall's Hespèrion XX (now Hespèrion XXI), La Capella Reial de Catalunya, and Le Concert des Nations, with whom he appeared in performances and on albums. Lislevand's numerous recordings can be found on a variety of labels, including ECM, Naïve, and Astree.
Lislevand was born on December 30, 1961, in Oslo, Norway. He studied music and guitar at the Norway Academy of Music from 1980 until 1984. Further training came over the next three years at the prestigious Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel, Switzerland, where he studied with lutenist Hopkinson Smith (a co-founder of Hespèrion XX) and Eugen Dombois. Lislevand had begun playing with Hespèrion XX by 1987, the year he relocated to Verona and began to study 17th century Italian music. Of the many recordings Lislevand made with Savall's groups, the 1993 Astree album España: Anthology of Spanish Music was among the more popular and critically acclaimed efforts.
In 1993, Lislevand joined the faculty of the Staatliche Hochschule in Trossingen, Germany, a post he still held in 2021. In the late '90s, Lislevand founded the Ensemble Kapsberger, dedicating the ensemble to the music of the Italian Baroque: his son, gambist André Lislevand, has been a member of Ensemble Kapsberger since 2010. Rolf's 2006 album Nuove Musiche, on ECM, achieved great success, both with critics and the public. Because of its success and Lislevand's growing popularity in the U.S., he was invited to appear on the American broadcast network National Public Radio, where he elaborated eloquently on his still-controversial approach toward Baroque music performance. Lislevand continues to appear regularly both as a soloist and as chamber player with Ensemble Kapsberger. La Mascarade (2016) was his first solo recording for the ECM label. In 2020, Lislevand joined Philippe Pierlot, Lucile Boulanger, and Myriam Rignol on the Mirare album Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe et ses filles.
© Robert Cummings & Keith Finke /TiVo
Similar artists
Discography
17 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
-
La Mascarade - Music For Solo Baroque Guitar & Theorbo
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on May 20, 2016
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
Fandango, Sinfonie & La Musica Notturna di Madrid
Rolf Lislevand, Le Concert Des Nations, Jordi Savall
Classical - Released by Alia Vox on Jan 1, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Monsieur de Sainte-Colombe et ses filles
Philippe Pierlot, Lucile Boulanger, Myriam Rignol, Rolf Lislevand
Classical - Released by Mirare on Apr 17, 2020
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Vivaldi: L'œuvre complète pour luth
Rolf Lislevand, Manfredo Kraemer, The Rare Fruits Council
Classical - Released by naïve classique on Jan 1, 1996
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pièces de viole (Parnasse de la viole, volume 2)
Jordi Savall, Rolf Lislevand, Xavier Díaz-Latorre, Philippe Pierlot, Pierre Hantaï
Classical - Released by Alia Vox on Jan 1, 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Encuentro Sanz & Santa Cruz
Rolf Lislevand, Eduardo Eguez, Béatrice Pornon, Adela Gonzalez-Campa
Classical - Released by naïve classique on Jan 1, 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Intavolatura
Classical - Released by naïve classique on Jan 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tourdion
Rolf Lislevand, Bjergsted Jazz Ensemble
Jazz - Released by Inner Ear on Sep 18, 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nuove Invenzioni
Rolf Lislevand, Concerto Stella Matutina
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on Jun 15, 2018
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Kapsberger: Libro quarto d'intavolatura di chitaronne
Chamber Music - Released by naïve classique on Jan 1, 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
La belle homicide
Classical - Released by naïve classique on Jun 17, 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
José Marín : Tonos Humanos
Montserrat Figueras, Rolf Lislevand
Classical - Released by Alia Vox on Jan 1, 1998
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schenk: Works for Viola Da Gamba
Lorenz Duftschmid, Sophie Watillon, Rolf Lislevand, Wolfgang Zerer
Chamber Music - Released by CPO on Jan 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nuove Musiche
Classical - Released by ECM New Series on Mar 7, 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jul I Gammel Tid
Christmas Music - Released by Kirkelig Kulturverksted on Nov 28, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Philidor: Suites for Flute and B. C.
Hans Olav Gorset, Paolo Pandolfo, Rolf Lislevand
Classical - Released by Simax Classics on Sep 25, 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Love Songs from Three Centuries
Rolf Lislevand, Marianne Hirsti
Classical - Released by Victoria on Jan 1, 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo