Lars Anders Tomter, born in Hamar, Norway, is one of the most outstanding violists of our time. He studied violin and viola from the age of eight with Leif Jørgensen, a teacher at the Oslo Conservatory of Music and the Norwegian State Academy. He continued his studies with Max Rostal and Sándor Vegh. He won a special prize for his performance of Bartók’s Viola Concerto at the International Viola Competition in Budapest in 1984 and the Maurice Vieux International Competition in Lille in 1986.

Lars Anders Tomter is the dedicatee of the concertos of composers Ragnar Söderlind, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Rolf Wallin and Anders Eliasson, for which he has given the world premieres. In 2011 he recorded Vagn Holmboe’s Viola Concerto with the Norrkoping Symphony Orchestra, published on the dacapo label. In 2015 he recorded Poul Ruders Viola Concerto with the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra and in 2017 he performed Egil Hovland’s Viola Concerto with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra.

Lars Anders Tomter’s solo appearances have been acclaimed by audiences and critics in the most prestigious concert halls in Europe and the USA: Vienna Musikverein, Carnegie Hall in New York, Wigmore Hall in London, Konzerthaus Berlin and Kölner Philharmonie. He has performed with orchestras such as the BBC Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, City of Birmingham, and the National Arts Centre.

He has performed with the BBC Symphony, BBC Scottish Symphony, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, RSO Frankfurt, NDR Hannover Radio Philharmonic, Gürzenich-Orchestra Cologne, Budapest Festival Orchestra, Hungarian National Philharmonic, Czech Philharmonic, KBS Symphony, Dutch Radio Philharmonic, Swedish Radio Symphony, Oslo Philharmonic, Bergen Philharmonic and the Danish National Radio Symphony.

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Conductors with whom he has worked include Marc Albrecht, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Sylvain Cambreling, Dennis Russell Davies, Olari Elts, Daniele Gatti, Manfred Honeck, Eivind Gullberg Jensen, Juha Kangas, Krzysztof Penderecki, Okko Kamu, Arvid Jansons, Dmitri Kitaenko, Ken-Ishiro Kobayashi, Ervin Lukács, Nello Santi, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Ulf Schirmer, John Storgårds, Yan Pascal Tortelier, Muhai Tang and Hans Vonk. In addition, Lars Anders Tomter frequently collaborates with internationally renowned musicians in chamber music projects.

Lars Anders Tomter is a regular guest at major festivals such as BBC Proms, Lockenhaus, Kissingen Summer, Mondseetage, Schleswig-Holstein, Schwetzingen, Styriarte, Verbier and several festivals in Scandinavia. He also founded the Risør Chamber Music Festival, which he directed until 2016, and now directs the Fjord Classics festival. His broad repertoire includes all the major contemporary works, and he has recorded for Simax, Naxos, Virgin Classics, NMC, Somm and Chandos.

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Lars Anders Tomter is a professor at the State Academy in Oslo, where he teaches the most talented students in the string classes. In 2013 he was appointed professor at the Royal Danish Music Academy in Copenhagen.

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He plays a viola by Gasparo da Salo from 1590.