The Board consists of eleven representatives, including four external members appointed by the Ministry of Education and Research. All members will serve until 2029. Here's a chance to get to know them better.
Get to know the external Board members
Marianne Marthinsen and Knut Skansen are new external members of NMH's Board from this year. Inga Bostad and Stein Bjelland are serving their second term.
It's a great pleasure to get to know such a highly specialised and dedicated environment as NMH. There are few places where the passion for one's field runs so deep and is so palpable as it is here.
Marthinsen
Marianne Marthinsen
- Residence: Oslo
- Job: Freelance author and writer
- Previous board experience: Chair of the Board at NORCE and board member of Amedia, Lovisenberg, and Oslo Havn, among others.
What motivates you to be on the NMH Board?
It's a great pleasure to get to know such a highly specialised and dedicated environment as NMH. There are few places where the passion for one's field runs so deep and is so palpable as it is here. The atmosphere practically hums when you walk in, and I'm thrilled to help carry this enthusiasm forward.
What are you most looking forward to in your Board work at NMH?
Getting to know the students, who represent a significant part of Norway's future in music.
What do you see as the key issues for NMH right now?
Solving the space problem so that NMH has enough facilities to allow the academic activities to flourish.
What do you enjoy most in your free time?
Spending time at our former fishery on the west coast of Norway. We spend our time fishing, gardening, and cooking there.
It is important for NMH to have board members who are familiar with the professional field that many students will enter after their studies.
Skansen
Knut Skansen
- Residence: Uranienborg, Oslo
- Job: Chief Executive Officer of the Oslo Philharmonic
- Previous board experience: As Director of Hotel Bondeheimen and Kaffistova in Oslo, I served on the Board of the business for 10 years. Later, as Director of Deichman, my Board was, by definition, the City Culture Commissioner. I've also been a board member of Biblioteksentralen (the purchasing organisation for all public libraries in Norway). In my current role, I sit on the Board of the Oslo Philharmonic.
What motivates you to be on the NMH Board?
When I was asked to join as a State-appointed member, it was important for NMH to have board members who are familiar with the professional field that many students will enter after their studies. Looking ahead, I believe it's vital for students to gain insight into and understanding of the working life they will encounter. I've worked for many years in change management, restructuring, and development processes. I hope I can contribute my experience in these areas, as well as insights from my perspective at the Oslo Philharmonic.
What are you most looking forward to in your Board work at NMH?
I'm looking forward to getting to know one of the country's most important educational and research institutions better. I am convinced that music plays a significant, yet often undercommunicated, role in society. Music and art open up new perspectives, but more importantly, they connect people. In an unsettled world and a time of transition, music has the potential to make society and individuals more resilient, creating meaning and a sense of connection.
What do you see as the key issues for NMH right now?
The short answer is to implement the new strategy. It provides the roadmap for the years ahead. I think the strategy is excellent because it was developed through a thoughtful and inclusive process with contributions from many people. Like other music and cultural institutions, as well as educational institutions, we need to insist on and clearly communicate the societal value of our work. This will be crucial.
What do you enjoy most in your free time?
I often listen to music, pick mushrooms, enjoy cooking, and spend time in Østmarka, where I have a cabin. I also enjoy when my two cats use me as a mattress.
I will contribute and share some of my board experience to help NMH, as one of our most important cultural institutions, become an even better place to study and grow.
Bostad
Inga Bostad
- Residence: Jar
- Job: Professor of Philosophy, Department of Education, University of Oslo
- Previous board experience: Eight years as elected Vice-Rector/Pro-Rector at UiO, four years as an external board member at Roskilde University, and eight years as Chair of the European Wergeland Centre.
What motivates you to be on the NMH Board?
To contribute and share some of my board experience to help NMH, as one of our most important cultural institutions, become an even better place to study and grow.
What are you most looking forward to in your Board work at NMH?
Being with, and learning from, so many knowledgeable and wise people – students and staff alike – and experiencing musical highlights from NMH's rich repertoire.
What do you see as the key issues for NMH right now?
To follow up on the strategy we have set for the coming years, and to maintain a predictable and sound financial direction.
What do you enjoy most in your free time?
Heading to the mountains as often as I can, hiking in the woods and hills, and gardening.
Having the opportunity to shape and contribute to ensuring that NMH remains world-class and relevant in a constantly changing world is a privilege.
Bjelland
Stein Bjelland
- Residence: Stavanger / New York
- Job: President of Stein70000 – in other words, my own boss.
- Previous board experience: Extensive board experience, including a previous term at NMH. I am currently re-elected as Chair of the Board for Music Norway. I have also served as Chair of the Fund for Audio and Visual Media, Chair of Kunsthall Stavanger, and Board Member of the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, among others.
What motivates you to be on the NMH Board?
Having the opportunity to shape and contribute to ensuring that NMH remains world-class and relevant in a constantly changing world is a privilege.
The music world, as always, is undergoing significant changes – driven by technology, new business models, politics, and shifting power structures. At the same time, the core of what we do, music, remains as meaningful to people today as ever. That never changes. There is something incredibly exciting about navigating these intersections.
What are you most looking forward to in your Board work at NMH?
Seeing all the great work that led to the new strategy in the previous period has now come to life! Additionally, being part of contributing to changes at NMH ensures that we provide even better content and meaning to all students and staff. I'm ambitious on behalf of NMH.
What do you see as the key issues for NMH now?
Implementing the strategy, establishing a well-functioning organisational structure, and, most importantly, developing NMH's physical facilities.
What do you enjoy most in your free time?
Cooking, gardening, and playing the guitar.
