Experimental contemporary violinist exploring the violin as an expanded instrument through artistic research and close collaborations with composers.

Swedish violinist, researcher, and artistic director Karin Hellqvist works at the forefront of contemporary music. Deeply engaged in the music of today, she is a sought-after soloist and dedicated chamber musician whose artistry combines curiosity, precision, and openness to collaboration. Through active dialogue with composers and fellow artists, her work explores, understands, and contributes to the creation of new music while also challenging traditional concert formats and established modes of artistic collaboration.

Karin is a member of several leading Scandinavian ensembles for contemporary music, including Cikada Ensemble, Oslo Sinfonietta, neon Ensemble, KammarensembleN, and Duo Hellqvist/Amaral. With these ensembles, she devotes her practice to commissioning and performing new works as well as championing the established repertoire of modern and contemporary music. In her solo projects, she regularly commissions new works that expand the violin repertoire—often exploring the instrument in combination with electronics, objects, and sound-based practices.

She is a frequent guest at renowned international venues and festivals such as Warsaw Autumn, Wittener Tage für neue Kammermusik, Donaueschinger Musiktage, Münchener Biennale, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Ultima Oslo Contemporary Music Festival, La Biennale di Venezia, Milano Musica, and Ultraschall Berlin, as well as institutions such as Harvard University, Berliner Philharmonie, the Pan Music Festivalin Seoul, and the International Summer Course for New Music Darmstadt.

Karin’s performances have been broadcast internationally, and she has contributed to several award-winning recordings. Her collaboration with the Norwegian label LAWO Classicshas resulted in two solo albums: flock(2019) and Palette(2024).

Educated at the Royal College of Musicin Stockholm, Universität der Künste Berlin, the Norwegian Academy of Musicin Oslo, and the Royal College of Music London—where she earned an Artist Diploma in Performance in 2011—Karin combines a broad European perspective with a strong artistic identity. She received the Interpreter’s Prize from the Society of Swedish Composersin 2016 and was elected an Honorary Member of the same society in 2020.

From 2018 to 2024, Karin was a PhD artistic research fellow at the Norwegian Academy of Music, where she explored how the classical musician’s role can be expanded through collaborative and interdisciplinary practices. As a researcher, she has published several articles on artistic collaboration and creative processes within contemporary music.