“In his compositional work, Stefan Prins (b. 1979) seeks to critique received convention, to break the framework of the usual, and dispose of aesthetic axioms. He envisions a musical art form beyond the safe confines of the “scene”, wherein the connection to the larger cultural discourse has gotten lost. A central precondition for making new music with a future is the role of an aware, critical observer, one who is prepared to exploit the technologies and mechanisms of prefabricated media with a view to their possibilities for new music. Stefan Prins lives up to this calling.” (Michael Rebhahn, 2012)
After graduating as an engineer, Stefan Prins (Kortrijk, Belgium, 1979) started to study piano and composition full time at the Royal Flemish Conservatory in Antwerp, Belgium, where he obtained his Master’s Degree in Composition magna cum laude. Concurrently, he studied technology in music at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels, sonology at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague and philosophy of culture and philosophy of technology at the University of Antwerp. Since September 2011, he divides his time between Europe and the USA where he pursues a PhD in composition at Harvard University under the guidance of Chaya Czernowin.
Stefan Prins is closely involved with the Nadar Ensemble as a composer and co-director and was one of the founders of the long-standing trio for improvised music collectief reFLEXible. He’s also a founding member of the band Ministry of Bad Decisions, with percussionist Brian Archinal and e-guitarist Yaron Deutsch. As a composer, he has received several important awards in Belgium and abroad.