Alwynne Pritchard, new Artistic Director for BIT20 Ensemble from 2016

Alwynne Pritchard becomes BIT20’s new Artistic Director from 2016, following Baldur Brönnimann, who then ends his 5 year period with BIT20.

I am thrilled to be taking up this position with the BIT20 Ensemble, having worked closely with them over the past 8 years as both Artistic Director of the Borealis festival, and as a composer on their education and outreach programs. Baldur Brönniman has done much exciting and adventurous work with the group in the past years, and I am looking forward to continuing his close relationship with the musicians and his bold approach to programming, says Alwynne Pritchard after the appointment. 

There was a huge interest in the position, which was announced widely in Norway and abroad. Pritchard was in competition with over 40 relevant applicants, and was offered the job after a thorough process.

Alwynne Pritchard was the best qualified of the applicants, and we feel assured that she will bring us further into the future through exciting and ground breaking artistic projects, says Peter Kates, musician and member of the Board of Directors in BIT20.

We have had an artistic upswing with Baldur, and are looking forward to continuing with Alwynne our commitment to bringing contemporary music to a broad public. She has a distinct artistic profile with a basis in composed music, but constantly challenges boundaries. Her strength is that she acts just as naturally in the roles of composer, performer and leader of composition projects for and with adults and children. This is not an obvious thing to do, Trude Bruket, General Manager of BIT20 points out.

Pritchard is currently based in Bergen, and works as a freelance composer and performer. 

She will premiere her solo project DOG/GOD at Bergen international Festival on Thursday 4 June 8 pm at Østre. She has commissioned a series of short music-theatre pieces, all of which make substantial vocal and physical demands on the performer. The idea came to her on reading Paul Auster’s novel Timbuktu, in which Mr Bones, a likable mongrel, is the main character.