Versatillity, musicianship and a crystalline tone are just a few of the qualities that have contributed to the blossoming of Norwegian-born Mari Eriksmoen’s career over the last decade, fostering close collaborations with many key orchestras, conductors and directors and making acclaimed appearances on Europe’s premiere opera, concert and recital stages.
Eriksmoen has excelled as Mélisande in Pelléas et Mélisande (Opera Vlaanderen, Grand Théâtre de Genève, Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, Teatro de la Maestranza, Sevilla), Pamina in Simon McBurney’s acclaimed staging of Die Zauberflöte (Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Dutch National Opera, Opernhaus Zürich, Bergen National Opera), Marzelline in Fidelio (Opéra Comique), La Fée in Cendrillon (Komische Oper Berlin), Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro and Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier (Den Norske Opera), and Waldvogel in Daniel Barenboim’s epic Ring Cycles at Teatro alla Scala. Adding several new roles to her repertoire in recent seasons, Eriksmoen sang the title role in Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea with Ensemble I Gemelli, performed the title role of Gerda in Hans Abrahamsen’s The Snow Queen at Het Concertgebouw, Cleopatra in Handel’s Giulio Cesare at Festival d’opéra baroque de Beaune, and Romilda in Xerxes in a dynamic new staging at Opéra de Rouen. She debuted as Donna Anna in Mozart’s Don Giovanni in concert performances with Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra under Daniel Harding before singing the role in production at Kilden Performing Arts Centre under Risto Joost.
Concert highlights in recent seasons include with Berliner Philharmoniker and Ivan Fischer in Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Münchner Philharmoniker and Paavo Järvi in Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem, Gewandhausorchester Leipzig under Philippe Herreweghe in Schumann’s Das Paradies und die Peri, Philharmonia Orchestra and Santtu-Matias Rouvali and Orchestre de Paris and Klaus Mäkelä in Mahler’s Symphony No.2, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and Jukka-Pekka Saraste in Mahler’s Symphony No.8 and Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra under Ed Gardner in Britten’s Les illuminations and Canteloube’s Chants d’Auvergne. Marking her debut at Salzburger Festspiele, Mari Eriksmoen joined Václav Luks and Collegium 1704 as Isacco in Myslivecek’s rarity Abramo ed Isacco.
As part of Eriksmoen’s 2023/24 season, she debuts as Blanche de la Force in Barrie Kosky’s critically acclaimed production of Poulenc’s Dialogues des Carmelites under Yi-Chen Lin for Den Norske Opera and makes her debut with Chicago Symphony Orchestra in Mahler’s Symphony No.2 under Esa-Pekka Salonen. She continues her regular presence on Europe’s major concert stages singing Mozart’s Requiem with Orchestre des Champs-Élysées under Phillippe Herreweghe in venues including Hamburg Elbphilharmonie, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Kölner Philharmonie and Alte Oper Frankfurt; she joins Kent Nagano at both Munich’s Isarphilharmonie for Bach’s Weihnachtsoratorium and Tonhalle Zürich for Mahler’s Symphony No.4, Andris Poga at Stavanger Symphony Hall, again in Mahler’s Symphony No.4, and she joins celebratory New Year concerts at both Oslo Konserthus with Manfred Honeck and Wiener Konzerthaus for Wiener Symphoniker’s annual Beethoven’s Symphony No.9, this year conducted by Omer Meir Wellber.
Eriksmoen completed her studies in Oslo (Norwegian Academy of Music), Paris (Conservatoire National Superieur) and Copenhagen (Royal Danish Academy of Opera) before being launched immediately into her career in 2010 by an invitation to debut as Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos at Theater an der Wien, conducted by Bertrand de Billy. Those performances marked the beginning of a regular presence on the historic Vienna stage, returning across the next decade as Olympia (Les contes d’Hoffmann), Euridice (Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo), Servilia (La clemenza di Tito), Agilea (Handel’s Teseo), and as Susanna, Zerlina and Fiordiligi in the Da Ponte Trilogy conducted by the late Nikolaus Harnoncourt.
A fast-growing discography includes recent releases of Britten and Canteloube with Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra and Ed Gardner (Chandos), Handel and Mozart with Stavanger Symphony Orchestra and Jan Willem de Vriend (Challenge Classics), and her “poised, elegant and persuasive” (The Guardian) debut recital disc with pianist Alphonse Cémin (Alpha). She also appears on Schumann’s Szenen aus Goethes Faust with Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks under Daniel Harding (Naxos) and Mozart’s Die Entführung aus dem Serail with both Akademie für alte Musik Berlin under René Jacobs (harmonia mundi) and Glyndebourne Festival Opera under Robin Ticciati (Opus Arte DVD).
2023/24
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