Background
As the son and grandson of organists, playing the organ came naturally to Bjerkestrand and he started early to compose music as well.
As the son and grandson of organists, playing the organ came naturally to Bjerkestrand and he started early to compose music as well.
As a musician, he has participated in recordings with a-ha, Ray Charles, Ute Lemper, Ian Hunter, Dance with a Stranger, DumDum Boys, Jonas Fjeld Band, Marius Müller, TNT, Arve Tellefsen, Bobbysocks, Bjørn Eidsvåg, Carola Häggkvist and Dee Dee Bridgewater. He composed music for several films and television series, many of them in collaboration with Magne Furuholmen under the name Timbersound. He has produced albums for Anne Grete Preus, a-ha, Lynni Treekrem and Herborg Kråkevik.
Along with the saxophonist Tore Brunborg, he has released two albums with Christmas music and hymns.
In 2009 Bjerkestrand composed music for the play Sangen om den røde rubin, based on the novel by the same name, together with Anne Grete Preus. In 2010 he released his first solo album Piano Poems on the label Kirkelig Kulturverksted.
1994: Ti kniver i hjertet (film music for Ti kniver i hjertet), with Magne Furuholmen 1995: Gull, Røkelse og Myrra (Kirkelig Kulturverksted), with Tore Brunborg 1997: Prima Luna (Kirkelig kulturverksted), with Tore Brunborg 1997: Hotel Oslo (music for the television series Hotel Oslo), with Magne Furuholmen 1998: Hermetic (Rune Grammofon) (film music for 1732 Høtten), with Magne Furuholmen & Freddie Wadling 2001: Dragonfly (film music for Øyenstikker), with Magne Furuholmen 2010: Piano poems (Una Corda) (Kirkelig Kulturverksted).
