“Nothing gives me more of a kick and more joy, than communicating on stage what I love most in the whole world."

Photo: Bård Gundersen

Birgitta Elisa Oftestad is an exciting young Norwegian cellist with a unique stage presence. She was born in Oslo in 2002 and lifted her first cello bow at the age of five. Since then, she has moved audiences with her rich, expressive sound and profound musicality, both in the large concert halls and on intimate stages. And she has, as soloist, won 18 national and international 1st prizes.

Birgitta represented Norway, and made it to the final, in the international competition “Eurovision Young Musicians” in Edinburgh in 2018. The same year she won the Norwegian broadcasting corporation - NRK’s competition "Virtuos", "the Norwegian Soloist Prize", and "Frans Helmerson's award" during the cello festival at The Kronberg academy.

Photo: Jakob Lundberg

In 2019 Birgitta opened the Oslo Chamber Music Festival's 30th anniversary with Bach's cello suite no 4, repeating Truls Mørk’s opening program from the first festival in 1969. And in 2021, she performed Prokofiev's Sinfonia Concertante with Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, after being the youngest winner of the Oslo Philharmonic's "Young Soloist Competition".
Her appearances include playing with orchestras such as the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Trondheim Symphony orchestra, Trondheim Soloists, Ålesund Symphony Orchestra, Frankfurt Youth Philharmonic, Oslo Symphony Orchestra, the University Orchestra, Kaunas Symphony Orchestra, Telemark Chamber Orchestra, Tallinn Chamber orchestra, Oslo Camerata and David Geringa's orchestra.

Birgitta is a passionate chamber musician and she has played with different musicians, such as Christian Ihle Hadland, Henning Kraggerud, Mari Silje and Håkon Samuelsen, Per Arne Glorvigen, Nikita Khnykin, Igor Eliseer, Eivind Ringstad, Alexandra Conunova, Ian Bostridge, Wolfgang Plagge, Andreas Brantelid and Lars Anders Tomter.

Photo: Agnete Brun

She has played at many festivals, both as a soloist and a chamber musician. She has had her own recital at the Bergen International Festival, and has been a soloist at the Frankishe Müsiktage, Alzenau, with Diana Adamyan. Other festivals include Verbier festival, Stavanger Chamber music festival, Bowdoin International Festival, Hardanger Music fest,The Aula series, Sunnmøre Chamber music Festival, Valdres Summer Symphony, Oslo Cello Festival, Hamar Chamber music festival and Kaunas festival. She has also premiered pieces for cello solo and orchestra by Ørjan Matre, Christoffer Håård and Peder Barratt-Due.

Birgitta studies with prof. Thorleif Thedèen at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo. She has previously studied with Louisa Tuck and Ole Eirik Ree at Barratt Due Music Institute in Oslo, and she had Truls Mørk and Andreas Brantelid as supplementary teachers. She has taken part in the Barratt Due Young Talents, the Crescendo Mentor Programme, the ARTex talent development program (2021-23) and Peter Herresthal’s soloist mentor program (2024-)

She plays on a Peter Westerlund cello, generously on loan from Dextra Musica.