Rolf Lislevand was born on 30 December 1961 in Oslo and is a Norwegian performer of early music specializing in lute, vihuela, Baroque guitar, and theorbo. He studied classical guitar at the Norwegian Academy of Music before entering the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Basel in 1984 to study with Hopkinson Smith and Eugen Dombois. His 1993 debut recording of Kapsberger’s Libro Quarto d’intavolatura di chitarrone launched an acclaimed career that has included extensive collaboration with Jordi Savall, a contribution to the soundtrack of Tous les Matins du Monde, and recordings for Astrée, Naïve, and ECM New Series, winning multiple Diapason d’Or and Spellemannprisen awards.

Rolf Lislevand’s genre-crossing approach, blending rigorous historical performance with improvisation and folk and jazz sensibilities, has broadened the audience for early plucked-string music beyond traditional early-music circles, particularly through his ECM recordings. His interpretations of Kapsberger and Corbetta are considered defining, and as a longtime professor in Trossingen he has shaped a generation of younger lutenists and guitarists.

Sources:

• https://ecmrecords.com/artists/rolf-lislevand/
• https://bachtrack.com/review-rolf-lislevand-salzburg-whitsun-festival-may-2015