Hege Høisæter
She is known for roles like the Countess in The Queen of Spades, and as Wagner’s Erda. Now Hege Høisæter comes to her former home town Bergen as the witch Ježibaba in Rusalka.
The Norwegian mezzo-soprano Hege Høisæter was born in Bergen, and studied at The Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester and at The Norwegian Opera Academy in Oslo.
She was a part of the soloist ensemble at The Norwegian National Opera & Ballet 2002-2016 and revisited it ready in the autumn 2017 as the leading role Edith in the world premiere of Synne Skouen’s Ballerina, followed by The Countess in Tchaikovsky’s The Queen of Spades 2018.
Important roles at The Norwegian National Opera & Ballet were Sextus (Sesto) in Mozart’s La clemenza di Tito, the title role in Carmen, Jocaste in Stravinsky’s Oedipus Rex and Mescalina in Le grand macabre by Ligeti.
She also has had leading roles and had written music for her by distinguished Norwegian composers such as Gisle Kverndokk, Glenn-Erik Haugland and Rolf Wallin, both on and off the opera stage.
Høisæter made her Swedish debut and role debut as Erda in Wagner’s Das Rheingold at Göteborgsoperan in 2018 and as Schwertleite in 2019. In 2019 she also launched her CD Jordlys (Earth Light) with songs by Norwegian composers.
She sang Erda again in season 2019/2020, in the video recording of Siegfried (due to the Covid-19-situation), and she was First Norn when the Gothenburg Ring-cycle was completed with the last part: Götterdämmerung season 2021/22.
In 2022 she toured in the role as Judith in a chamber version of Bartók's one act opera Duke Bluebeard's Castle. And before she arrived in Bergen as Ježibaba spring, she played Mrs Grose in Benjamin Britten's The Turn of the Screw at Folkoperan in Stockholm.
In September Hege Høisæter sings the role as Amelie in the world premiere of Fram by Synne Skouen, at the Norwegian Opera & Ballet.
Updated March 2023
Photo: Anna-Julia Granberg/BLUNDERBUSS
