NILS BULTMANN
Violist & Composer
Nils Bultmann is a Berkeley, California based violist, improviser and composer who is committed to developing his own voice within a wide variety of musical styles and art forms, but resolutely grounded in the classical tradition. His work is informed and inspired by the ritual element of performance as well as by a belief in the transformative nature of rigorous writing and the palpable emotional impact of a concert hall experience. The versatility of his background extends from classical repertoire while a Viola Fellow at the New World Symphony to improvisational and experimental music while recording and touring with jazz saxophonist and composer, Roscoe Mitchell. Nils has additionally been quite active with collaborative projects involving the mediums of dance and film, as well as teaching both privately and at University of California at Berkeley.
Nils completed his PhD in music composition at the University of California Berkeley where he worked with Edmund Campion and David Wessel at the Center for New Music and Audio Technologies(CNMAT). At CNMAT, Bultmann created interactive multimedia works and video installation pieces.
Mr. Bultmann is recipient of numerous grants and awards, including the Aaron Copland Recording Grant for his acoustic works on Innova records, which features his series of viola duets with Hank Dutt of the Kronos Quartet. He was commissioned by Michael Tilson-Thomas to compose and perform in a new work for 31 violas (in 8 parts) as part of the 2019 Viola Visions Festival in Miami Beach.
He has exclusively been devoting his attention and passion to composing orchestral music where his rhapsody entitled The Journey is his most recent expression.