Ingar BergbyPhoto: John Halvdan Halvorsen

Ingar Bergby

Conductor | Norwegian | b. 1964

About Ingar Bergby

Ingar Bergby was born in 1964 in Sarpsborg, Norway, and grew up playing in local wind bands. He studied clarinet with Richard Kjelstrup at the Norwegian Academy of Music, then orchestral conducting with Karsten Andersen at the same institution and with Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Academy, graduating as a conductor in 1991.

Bergby is one of Norway's leading conductors, known for his versatility across classical, opera, contemporary, and crossover music, and has collaborated with major Norwegian and Scandinavian orchestras. He was principal conductor of the Värmlands Opera and Värmlands Sinfonietta from 1999 to 2005, and permanent guest conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra from 2003 to 2008, focusing on Norwegian and Nordic repertoire. He served as profile conductor with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra (KORK) in 2009–2010 and has returned for engagements there every year since.

A regular guest conductor with nearly all Nordic orchestras, Bergby is renowned for his interpretations of contemporary music, having premiered works by Norwegian composers including Thommessen, Wallin, and Vaage. He has also conducted Norwegian wind bands, earning national and European championship titles, and in 2024 served as conductor-in-residence for the Cartagena Music Festival.