Robert Levin (Norwegian pianist)

Although he was an accomplished solo pianist and composer, Levin received international acclaim for his work as an accompanist with several of the world's most celebrated vocal and instrumental performers.

He took private lessons with concertmaster Gustav Fredrik Lange (1861–1939) and notably composer Fartein Valen (1887–1952), being exposed to a wide range of musical traditions and innovations.

[4] After Norway was occupied by Nazi Germany in 1940, Levin continued to perform but was subjected to daily threats and restrictions on the venues and music he could play.

When Nazi authorities in occupied Norway started arresting and deporting Jews, Levin went under cover with friends and eventually fled to Sweden.

The rest of his family arrived in Sweden a few days later, but many of Levin's closest relatives were deported from Norway and were victims of the Holocaust in Auschwitz.

Sponsored by the Norwegian government-in-exile and Svenska Norgeshjälpen, Levin performed for members of the Norwegian Resistance Movement in Sweden along with his wife Solveig, Randi Heide Steen, Ernst Glaser, Gunnar Sønstevold, Hugo Kramm, Gunnar Reiss Andersen, Axel Kielland, Lauritz Falk, Sonja Mjøen, and others.

He accompanied such diverse international artists as Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Yehudi Menuhin, Roberta Peters, Rita Streich, Henryk Szeryng, Ann Brown, Kim Borg, Camilla Wicks, Felicia Weathers; and a panorama of Norwegian artists that included Ingrid Bjoner, Knut Skram, Arve Tellefsen, Terje Tønnesen, Elise Båtnes, Aase Nordmo Løvberg, Edith Thallaug, and Ole Bøhn.

The two, along with other musicians including Ole Bøhn, Knut Skram, Felicia Weathers, and Ingrid Bjoner performed pieces by Edvard Grieg, Richard Hageman, Harry Owens, Aaron Copland, Celius Dougherty, Oley Speaks, George Gershwin.

He took an active part in music education at all ages, led the Norwegian Society of Composers and Lyricists (NOPA), and promoted the art of accompaniment.