Eivind Aadland
Conductor
Eivind Aadland is one of Norway’s leading conductors, who brings both historical rigour and fresh insight to his interpretations of Classical and Romantic repertoire. He is well known to audiences across Australia and East Asia, having toured the region extensively, and was Principal Guest Conductor of the Queensland Symphony Orchestra from 2011 to 2013. In 2020 he took up his new position as Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra, based in Hobart, a city that is quickly becoming a leading cultural destination.
He has fostered loyal relationships with orchestras around the world, including the WDR Symphony Orchestra Köln, with whom he recorded a definitive five-volume set of Grieg’s complete symphonic works. Between 2004 and 2010 he was Chief Conductor and Artistic Leader of the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra, and he has worked with the National Orchestra of Belgium, Seoul Philharmonic, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony and Oslo Philharmonic.
His musical sensitivity and calm leadership also makes him a favourite collaborator for singers and he has conducted productions of Don Giovanni, Le nozze di Figaro, Die Zauberflöte and Die Fledermaus for Den Norske Opera, Oslo.
Aadland is a devoted and expert collector of contemporary art. His private collection consists of more than 250 works by some 60 artists, encompassing painting, sculpture, photography and video. His love of visual arts connects directly with his profound understanding of music, the two offering different ways of expressing and understanding human experience. He enjoys bringing these forms together in imaginative collaborations with visual artists. Most recently these have included Over Seas, a celebration of water with Elina Brotherus, and a multimedia staging of Grieg’s Peer Gynt with Alexander Polzin. He has conducted Fauré’s Requiem alongside Mat Collishaw’s film Sky Burial and in 2026 he conducts Belgian National Orchestra in William Kentridge's Oh, To Believe in Another World, a visual interpretation of Shostakovich’s Symphony no.1.
Aadland is a passionate advocate of Norwegian music and his extensive discography includes works by Norwegian composers such as Irgens-Jensen, Bull, Schjelderup, Groven, Monrad Johansen and Nordheim. He is committed to the next generation of musicians, devoting time to educational projects such as Dirigentløftet, a mentoring scheme for young Norwegian conductors, and youth orchestras including Iceland Symphony Youth Orchestra, Oslo Philharmonic’s Young Philharmonic, Bergen Philharmonic’s BFUng, National Youth Orchestra of Norway and Australian Youth Orchestra.
You can see Eivind Aadland live with the Auckland Philharmonia on Thursday 2 April at Boléro.