The Norwegian bass-baritone, Håvard Stensvold, began his interest for singing very early. Already at a very early age he was singing soprano with the Norwegian boys choir Sølvguttene. He studied from 1994 at the Royal Opera Academy in Copenhagen with Professor Susanna Eken, and from 1998 in the soloist class at the Royal Danish Music Conservatory. He graduated in the summer of 2000. Among his teachers were also Ingrid Bjoner and Håkan Hagegård.
Håvard Stensvold made his debut at the Royal Theater in Copenhagen as Masetto in Don Giovanni in 1997. Recent opera engagements have included Papageno in Die Zauberflöte, Guglielmo in Così Fan Tutte, Masetto in Don Giovanni, Malatesta in Don Pasquale, Zuniga in Carmen, and The Wooden Soldier in The Doll Doctor at the Norwegian National Opera, Masetto in Don Giovanni at the Royal Danish Opera in Copenhagen, the title role in Don Giovanni in staged performances with Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, Guglielmo in Così Fan Tutte at the Fynske Opera in Odense, Denmark, Figaro in Le Nozze Di Figaro in Copenhagen, and Marullo in Rigoletto at the Nordland Music Festival, Norway.
Håvard Stensvold regularly works with conductors such as Andrew Litton, Michel Plasson, Patrick Fournillier, Fabio Biondi, Paul Goodwin, Roland Böer, Francesco Corti, Bruno Weil and Lars Ulrik Mortensen. He has worked as a soloist with Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Iceland Symphony Orchestra and also held a series of concerts at the Oslo Chamber Music Festival and in Purcell concerts at the Early Music Festival in Bruges in Belgium.
He is a much sought after concert, oratorio, and recital singer. He has a vast repertoire with a wide range of music. He spends considerable time singing contemporary music and we should mention his appearance in world premiers of Kjell Habbestad's opera The Maid Of Norway in Bergen, Norway, Svend Hvidtfelt Nielsen opera The Little Mermaid, and The Soldier in the world premiere of Palmar Johansen's Madonna Furiosa.
He has also sung in the opera Dokkedoktoren by Bengt Perry.
Engagements in the 2007-2008 season include Zebul in George Frideric Handel's Jephta with the conductor Fabio Biondi, Polyphemos in G.F. Handel's Acis And Galatea at the Innsbrucker Festwochen der alten Musik and at the Early Music Festival in Bruges, Mercurio / Famigliaro II / Littore and Tribuno II in Monteverdi's L'incoronazione Di Poppea at the Royal Danish Opera, concerts with opera arias with the Norwegian National Opera, J.S. Bach's St. John Passion (BWV 245) with the conductor Paul Goodwin, J.S. Bach's Mass in G Minor (BWV 232) as well as Jan Dismas Zelenka's Missa Dei Filii in Malaga, Cádiz, Las Palmas, Tenerife and Copenhagen with the conductor Lars Ulrik Mortensen, J.S. Bach's Cantata BWV 49 Ich geh und suche mit verlangen at the Fartein Valen Festival, J.S. Bach's Mass in B Minor (BWV 232) in Bodoe, G.F. Handel's Messiah in Copenhagen and Sarpsborg, J.S. Bach's Magnificat (BWV 243) and Himmelfahrts Oratorium (BWV 11) in Trondheim.
Other upcoming engagements include Baritone in the world premier of Cecilie Ore's Dead Beat Escapement at the Norwegian National Opera, Fago's Il Faraone Sommerso in Spain, Italy, Poland with the conductor Fabio Biondi, Mozart's Requiem with Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and the conductor Muhai Tang, J. Haydn's Theresienmesse with Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the conductor Robin Ticciati, Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 with Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra, David in the world premier of Staale Kleiberg's David And Bathsheba in Trondheim, and concerts with music by Purcell at the Flanders Festival Bruges.