Oli Wilson


Oli Wilson is a New Zealand ethnomusicologist and a member of The Chills.

Academic career

Wilson was raised in Palmerston North, the son of deer researcher Peter Wilson, who retired as Professor Emeritus at Massey University. He graduated with a Bachelor of Music from the University of Otago in 2007, and completed his PhD there in 2012 with a thesis entitled Ples and the production of Lokal music in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. His PhD work while based at the University of Papua New Guinea studied the production of pop music in Port Moresby.
After working as a lecturer in Otago University's Music Department, Wilson joined Massey University's College of Creative Arts in 2015 as programme leader of the new Wellington-based commercial music degree. He is currently a Senior Lecturer in the School of Music and Creative Media Production.

Research

One of Wilson's research areas is the transformation of the music industry in Papua New Guinea with the increasing access to recording technology. He studies the way the music industry operates, both in New Zealand and overseas, from the viewpoint of a practising musician and a ethnographer.
Wilson is currently the co-editor of the journal Perfect Beat: The Asia Pacific Journal of Contemporary Music and Popular Culture.

Music

A classically-trained pianist, Wilson was a founder member of the four-piece Dunedin self-described "doom pop" band Knives at Noon, and played keyboards on their EP Glitter Guts.
Since 2010 Wilson has been a keyboard player for the iconic Dunedin band The Chills. He toured Australia and New Zealand with both Knives at Noon and The Chills, and has toured Europe, Britain, and the USA with the latter.

Selected research

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