Leif Arne Pedersen

About Leif Arne Pedersen

Leif Arne Pedersen, principal conductor and artistic director of the Royal Norwegian Air Force Band, began his professional career as clarinettist of the Staff Band of the Norwegian Armed Forces. After performing for a time with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, he joined the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra in 1988 and has been principal clarinet since 1990. In recent years, Pedersen has fashioned a career as conductor.

He has guest-conducted all the Norwegian military bands, and served from 2003 to 2008 as principal conductor of the Royal Norwegian Navy Band. Leif Arne Pedersen has made a number of recordings, both as conductor and as clarinettist. In 1996 he premiered Rolf Wallin's clarinet concerto, a work for which Wallin received the Nordic Council Music Prize, and he won a Spellemannspris (Norway's Grammy) for his recording of this concerto.

Leif Arne Pedersen has been principal conductor and artistic director of the Royal Norwegian Air Force Band since January 2011.