Industry Talk: Sverre Eilertsen

“Tell us about yourself?”

“I am a 26 year old guy from the far north who’ve settled down in the capitol after falling in love with the city, its people and its surroundings. For the past couple of years, I’ve been up to a myriad of different things, mainly in the festival world. However, I’ve ended up working with booking for the biggest showcase festival in the Nordics, by:Larm, as well as programming Parkteatret, a 500 capacity venue in Grünerløkka in Oslo.”

“What has been on your to-do-list lately, and what takes up the most of your time?”

“I took the helm as programmer at Parkteatret Scene in Oslo on September 1st. It is unavoidable that there is a whole lot to learn coming in to a role like this, so naturally most of my time has been spent getting up to speed. Not only programming the live bit, but also planning and executing the autumn program in the best way possible together with the rest of the team takes up a lot of time. We’re currently also trying to further develop Parkteatret as a whole, and to figure out new ways of making use of our space(s). It’s been a very fun process, that I’m continuously learning a lot from.

Simultaneously we’ve kicked off by:Larm 2020, where I am currently in my third year as head of booking. Our administration has a couple of new faces, we’ve just moved to new offices, and we’re working in-depth on new ideas and measures to further strengthen the festival for the coming years.

In short – very hectic, but I wouldn’t dream of doing anything else. It is truly inspiring.”

“The most important piece of advice you have ever received?”

“There are two pieces of advice that I have received from different people that will always stay with me:

1. “When emailing, CC is life”,and;

2. “We need to have a bit of fun too!”

“Any helpful tips and tricks for a way around the industry?”

“Always trust your own perceptions, thoughts and beliefs, but at the same time maintain a humble approach and an openness to other people’s ideas and experiences, in addition to a willingness to learn new things.”

“Why Norway, why now? Where are we going?”

“I think there is something to the Norwegian expression “annerledeslandet” – Norwegians being a breed of their own.

Looking at it from an international perspective, Norwegian concertgoers are immensely diverse compared to the amount of people living here. I think this means that artists develop in different ways than what you might find other places, which in turn challenges organizers and the music industry as a whole to be forward thinking and creative.

There are so many exciting Norwegian musicians, acts and producers flourishing out of their bedrooms, rehearsal spaces and studios all over the country. And at the same time, we have so many quality internationals act come through because they’ve noticed that Norway is a country of genuinely seeking and attentive audiences.”

“Who in the Norwegian music industry deserves a high five?”

“Can I choose two people?

Limita Lunde – for always supporting and putting the people she’s working with in front. A versatile, excellent leader and a fantastic human being that I am very grateful for having worked with and gotten to know.

Joakim Haugland – for always pushing things forward, and for thinking and working in different ways than other people do in Norway.”