Erika Hammarberg

About Erika Hammarberg

At Örebro University, Erikas teaching primarily revolves around composition and arranging. She oscillates between artistic and pedagogical work, with substantial experience in teaching at the university level, with engagements at institutions including the Royal College of Music, Stockholm Music Educational Institute, and Umeå University. 

Erika is a composer, pianist, and arranger whose work spans across compositions for big band, chamber ensemble, and classical choir. She navigates within an acoustic realm characterized by linear melodies, multi-layered rhythmic intensity, and harmonies ranging from triads to complex clusters. Her music often delves into questions of identity and relationships. With a background as a classical pianist who actively departed from the classical tradition, she now oscillates within the realms of jazz and contemporary classical music, both as a composer and pianist. Nevertheless, classical music remains an important subconscious underlying thread in her work.

Educated at institutions including the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, with a Master's degree in jazz composition, a Master's degree in advanced music theory, and a Bachelor's degree in piano from the The Stockholm University College of Music Education, as well as a teaching degree, her diverse background is evident in her involvement in various types of projects. She has collaborated with ensembles such as Elaria Orchestra, Bohuslän Big Band, and has composed pieces for big bands, choirs, chamber orchestras, and string quartets, with improvisation serving as a common thread throughout her works. Ongoing collaborative projects include Elaria Orchestra - a professionally gender-balanced big band, and Project Frostros/Rosenfrost - an improvisation project for and with choirs, in collaboration with German composer Birgitta Flick.