About Erika
Swedish classical guitarist Erika Clevejarn regularly appears as a soloist and chamber musician across the United Kingdom and internationally. Her diverse performances are recognized for their imaginative, creative and sensitive style and approach.
Driven by her passion for inspiring and educating the new generation of young guitarists, Erika is one for the co-founders of Sweden’s first youth guitar festival and is a core member of Play2Festival’s team of tutors in Armenia, where she has coached students at the Komitas State Conservatoire of Yerevan, and conducted large youth guitar orchestras in Armenia’s major concert halls. She is also on the National Youth Guitar Ensemble’s (NYGE) list of mentors in the UK.
Erika regularly performs in notable venues and guitar festivals around the world. Past solo concert highlights have included Komitas Chamber Music Hall (in Armenia, performance including the world premiere of Christopher Stell’s piece of ‘On the Banks of Mother Araks’), the Swedish Guitar and Lute Festival, Oskarshamn International Guitar Festival (Sweden), the Swedish Church in London’s Concert Series, and numerous classical guitar societies in the UK and abroad.
Passionate about expanding the classical guitar repertoire, Erika takes pleasure in collaborating with composers and performing new works. She has performed several world premieres and has had multiple compositions dedicated to her. Upcoming premieres (2025-27) include new works by Laura Snowden and Christopher Stell.
Along with solo work, Erika is a dedicated chamber musician. She was recently appointed as a Fellow of NYGE and is a member of NYGE’s flagship Fellowship Ensemble. Other recent collaborative projects includes ‘The Light on the Edge’ – a project featuring two guitars and various other instruments in a contemporary context.
Erika is a highly devoted educator and enjoys creating new exciting opportunities for young guitarists. She has over 10 years of teaching experience and is deeply passionate about the presence of music education in schools. She currently holds permanent teaching positions in primary and secondary schools in London where she is based. Aspiring to make the classical guitar more accessible for young people from diverse backgrounds, she enjoys holding regular classes, workshops and presentations in schools. She has collaborated with Wigmore Hall’s learning programme and was invited twice to lead workshops on one of their courses. She is regularly invited to teach at festivals and courses in the UK and abroad. Erika is also a teacher-assessor for the Associate Board of the Royal School of Music’s Music Medals.
Erika has degrees from both the Royal College of Music in London (Bachelor of Music, Hons) and the Royal Academy of Music in London (Master of Arts in Performance). Her studies were generously supported by numerous scholarships and awards., and her masters degree at RAM was fully funded. During her time at the Royal Academy of Music, she also gained the LRAM (Licentiate of the Royal Academy of Music) teaching qualification. Before moving to London in 2016, Erika studied with Dutch classical guitarist Eric Lammers at Oskarshamns Folkhogskola in Sweden.
Erika plays a guitar by Swedish luthier Johannes Kitselis.
Awards and Scholarships:
Help Musicians Postgraduate Award (2022-23, 2023-24), Anna Whitlock’s International Postgraduate Award (2023-24), Thora Ohlsson Cultural Award (2022), Uppfostringsfonderna’s Postgraduate Scholarship (2022-24), Helge Axson Johnson’s Scholarship (2022-24), Hockerill Foundation’s Scholarship (2022, 2023), Gunvor & Josef Anér’s Scholarship (2022), Carl Erik Levin’s Scholarship (2022), the Kempe-Carlgrenska Scholarship (2016, 2018)
Recordings
On the Banks of Mother Araks by Christopher Stell
‘Water is sure to find its way’ - Armenian Proverb
”This piece was written during another period of turmoil and unrest for Armenia. I wanted to capture in the music the sense of stillness and peace that is a natural part of Armenian culture and life. At the same time, I wanted to reflect upon the effects of conflict which has been a constant menace to the Armenian people throughout its history. My starting point was the Armenian folk song ‘On the Banks of Mother Araks’ which beautifully conveys the peace and stillness found in the flowing water and the restful tranquility of the riverbank. The music also suggests a sense of loss and what has gone before. Throughout its history the river has become a symbol of grief and political struggle but continues to flow bringing new life and hope.”
The Music Box Pavane by Christopher Stell
Played by Erika Clevejarn and Laura Snowden
Gallery
