Povilas Syrrist-Gelgota (1976) is a viola player with 20 years of experience from the Oslo Philharmonic.
He is former Artistic Director of the Asker Chamber Music Festival, co-organizer of the Nansen Norwegian Music Festival in Kharkiv Ukraine) and he is a very active soloist and chamber musician.
Povilas is a very versatile artist who combines viola and voice in his classical / folk / new music programs.
He was awarded a medal by the Lithuanian Embassy in Norway for his efforts in building cultural bridges between Lithuania and Norway.
Povilas works closely with several composers from Turkey, Norway and Lithuania, and still plays premieres. Around 50 new works have been composed especially for him, and some of them are for the singing viola player.
Povilas travels around with solo tours, leads several chamber music groups, sings (including Lithuanian folk songs), composes, organizes concerts and loves to teach!
He started teaching at Utena (in Lithuania) municipal music school when he was 17 years old.
Today, Povilas is a permanent employee of Asker municipal cultural school with the qualification "Associate professor with promotion". There he teaches viola, violin, string ensemble and chamber music students in an immersion program. He has on several occasions worked as a substitute at Foss upper secondary school (oil, viola, chamber music, chamber orchestra) and has been an instructor in orchestra projects at the Norwegian Academy of Music's Orchestra, Oslo Symphony Orchestra,
Barratt Due / NMH project orchestra, NUSO, Nordstrand school orchestra, Asker Musica Sinfonietta and Ålesund Orchestra School.
Povilas was a jury member in DNB's soloist competition in Ålesund and jury leader in the National Soloist and Chamber Music competition in Lithuania «Naujieji atradimai»
Povilas has studied at:
Vilnius (Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater)
Paris (National Superior Conservatory of Music and Dance)
London (Guildhall School of Music and Drama)
Oslo (Norwegian Academy of Music)