- Born
- Like many Norwegians born in the countryside, Ragnar Bjerkreim's last name is the same as his place of birth. He was born in Bjerkreim county on April 19th, 1958. He got a keen interest in music at a very early age and eventually majored in Music at the University of Oslo; his thesis was entitled "The Function of Film Music". Fittingly it was as a film composer Bjerkreim would make his greatest impact.
His first success was the soundtrack to the 80s audience hit "Kamilla og tyven" and its sequel. Eventually he would become one of the most productive Norwegian composers in film and television. Especially worth noting is his score for the imaginary adventure movie "Jakten på nyresteinen" (Chasing the kidneystone), where he created a main theme that is one of the most Hollywood'esque music pieces to ever grace Norwegian cinema. Bjerkreim has also composed music for concert halls, mainly vocal music. In this genre his greatest composition is perhaps "Missa Caritatis", a religious musical journey to be performed in churches, inspired by the christian message of love. The mass combines gregorian song, choir, gospel, rock and jazz in a very bold yet beautiful way.
Bjerkreim's interest in social issues became visible when he composed the score for the United Nations 50th Anniversary TV-special "Music to a planet" (Musikk til en klode), where his music accompanied images from the history of the world organization. Bjerkreim has had several critically acclaimed records published, including several soundtrack albums. He has also written music for theater and even scored childrens musicals. He lives in Oslo, Norway.- IMDb Mini Biography By: Mike Patton <film@start.no>
- He got somewhat of an international breakthrough with the music for the TV series about Thor Heyerdahl, "The Kon-Tiki Man". The show aired in over 50 countries, and the soundtrack was published on BBC records.
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