The Pelle Prize 2025 was presented by Edition Wilhelm Hansen to composer Arnannguaq Gerstrøm and cellist Andrew Power on Wednesday, June 11.
The Pelle Prize is awarded to a composer whose talent dares to cross the norms of the time. This year marks the 9th year the award has been presented. Since 2023, the prize has also been awarded to a musician to acknowledge the great degree of curiosity, specialization and skill it takes to realize contemporary music.
This year's recipient of the composer Pelle Prize, Arnannguaq Gerstrøm, masterfully combines tradition and innovation in her work. She manages to draw from her Greenlandic heritage and multicultural background, captures nature's dramatic shifts in music and integrating extended techniques with traditional elements like drum song.
The musician Pelle Prize recipient, Andrew Power, has become a special force in Danish contemporary music over the past decade. As a cellist specializing in new music, he continues to play a central role as a soloist and ensemble player never shying away from new playing techniques, electronics and video performances. He is a member of Athelas Sinfonietta Copenhagen and has performed with Ensemble Modern and Ensemble Intercontemporain.
We would like to congratulate both Arnannguaq Gerstrøm and Andrew Power.
The prize is named after Danish composer Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen, who passed away in 2016. KLANG Festival, Edition Wilhelm Hansen and Pelle's widow Karin Birgitte Lund, founded the prize to honour the composer's legacy and his constant support of young composers.
