Thomas Bergersen

Norwegian composer Thomas Bergersen initially carved space by jointly crafting scores for prominent film trailers and commercials before turning to extended electronic-orchestral compositions under his own name. As co-founder of the production-music firm Two Steps from Hell, his contributions appeared in campaigns for the Twilight, Harry Potter, and Pirates of the Caribbean franchises, among hundreds more. Among his solo releases, the 2014 album Sun entered the Top Three of Billboard’s Classical Albums chart. In 2019 he unveiled his first symphony, Seven.

Thomas Jacob Bergersen began composing in 1997 in his birthplace of Trondheim, later relocating to Los Angeles. There he joined fellow composer Nick Phoenix to establish Two Steps from Hell in 2006. The partnership achieved major success in cinema, delivering trailer music for blockbusters including the Harry Potter films, Avatar, Pirates of the Caribbean, Twilight, Star Trek, and many others. Bergersen’s theatrical sensibility and command of digital orchestration positioned him as a leading voice in the trailer-music field, although the pair also scored games and television. Their material remained exclusive to advertising until the 2010 compilation Invincible gathered some of the duo’s best-known pieces; the album registered on soundtrack charts at streaming services.

The following year Bergersen issued his solo album Illusions, which appeared on the Billboard World Albums chart. While continuing active work with Two Steps from Hell—whose SkyWorld (2012) and Classics, Vol. 1 (2013) both reached the classical Top Ten—he kept releasing individual tracks and returned with Sun, his second solo collection, late in 2014. That album climbed to number three on Billboard’s classical chart, placed inside the Top 30 among independent releases, and reached number 157 on the Billboard 200. Two Steps from Hell’s Miracles likewise entered the classical Top Three the same year. In 2015 the duo secured their first classical number one with Battlecry.

After further classical Top Ten albums—Classics, Vol. 2 (2015), Vanquish (2016), and the chart-topping Unleashed (2017)—Bergersen presented the orchestral suite American Dream featuring the Bulgarian Studio Orchestra. The year 2019 brought new releases from both Bergersen (Seven) and Two Steps from Hell (Dragon). His debut symphony, Seven, merged choral and electronic elements with a traditional orchestra and was recorded with the Czech Republic-based Capellen Orchestra.