Gulli Bjornsson (b. 1991) is an Icelandic guitarist, composer, and programmer whose work combines electronics, acoustic instruments, and visual media into immersive experiences inspired by nature. His music has been described as “hypnotic” (News Gazette), “a knockout – wondrously inventive” (Soundboard Magazine), and “virtuosic, modern, occasionally discordant, but still accessible” (Classical Guitar Magazine).
He has written for New Jersey Symphony, Alarm Will Sound, Sō Percussion, Aizuri Quartet, Iarla Ó Lionáird, New York Classical Guitar Orchestra, Contemporaneous, Amanda Gookin, Dither, Jiji, Vicky Chow, Steve Cowan, Mirror Strings and others.
His compositions have recently been featured by Carnegie Hall, 92nd Street Y, Le Poisson Rouge, Caramoor, Octave 9: Raisbeck Music Center, TUTTI festival, Green Music Center, Centre Culturen Canadian Paris, San Francisco Performances, Guitar Foundation of America, New York Guitar Festival, Boston Celebrity Series, Harriman-Jewell Series, Purdue Convocations, Krannert Center, NDR Kultur, Ung Nordisk Musik, BU Tanglewood Institute amongst others.
Gulli has received international accolades for his compositions from the Changsha, Rust, and Veria International Guitar Composition Competitions, and grants from institutions including Fulbright, the American-Scandinavian Foundation, Valitor, Landsbankinn, and the International Advisory Board. As a guitarist, he won 1st prize at Nótan (Iceland’s national music competition) and the Lillian Fuchs Chamber Music Competition, and was a finalist in the ASTA National Solo Competition, European Guitar Award, and International Young Talents Competition. He was also awarded the Eliot Fisk Prize and Andrés Segovia Award during his studies at Yale School of Music and Manhattan School of Music
Gulli currently teaches composition and music technology at Bowling Green State University, having previosly been faculty at University of Kansas. Gulli holds a PhD in music composition from Princeton University and is an Augustine Artist and plays exclusively on Augustine Strings.
You can follow Gulli and see what he's up to on his artist pages:
https://www.facebook.com/gulli.bjornsson/
https://www.instagram.com/gulligitar/
Honors and Awards
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Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra Finalist for 'Bylur' 2026
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TUTTI Festival for 'Dimmar Öldur Rísa' 2026
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Recording grant from FÍH Cultural Fund for ‘Landslög’ 2023
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European Guitar Award - Finalist 2021, 2016
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Prize Winner of Veria International Guitar Festival Guitar Duo Composition Competition 2020 for ‘Repetitive Concert Etudes no.4 and 6’
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Fenton Brown Emerging Artist 2020
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Ung Nordisk Musik 2020 for ‘Bylur’
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Ung Nordisk Musik 2019 for ‘Dimmar Öldur Rísa’
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Yale School of Music - Eliot Fisk Prize 2018
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Recording Grant from FÍH Cultural Fund for ‘Bergmál’ 2018
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Finalist in Changsha International Guitar Composition Competition 2018 - for ‘Prelude no.1 and 4’
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2nd Prize - Guitar Festival Rust International Composition Competition 2017
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Grant from Landsbankinn 2016
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Thor Thor’s Grant from The American Scandinavian Foundation 2016
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Fulbright Scholarship 2015
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International Young Talents Competition - Finalist 2015
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Manhattan School of Music - Andrés Segovia Award 2014
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American String Teachers Association National Solo Competition - Finalist 2013
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Grant from Valitor 2012
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Winner of the Lillian Fuchs Chamber Music Competition 2013
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Grant as an 'Exceptional Young Artist' from Kopavogur 2011
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Winner of Notan competition as soloist Iceland 2010
Discography
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