David Pritchard-Blunt is already more than familiar with the Idol experience, having been part of the Idol band since the first season of Australian Idol.


“I’m very fortunate,” says David of becoming the Musical Director of Idol. “Having done six years, I know what it’s supposed to end up like, so it’s not like I’ve come in blind, that’d be a bit scary!”

“John was fantastic and it was his choice to stay in Melbourne this year,” says David of John Foreman, Idol’s former Music Director. “As the keyboard player, I was responsible for at least half of the arrangements I would always do, so it’s nice to jump over into the big chair - it’s great.”

David, who moved to Australia from New Zealand 20 years ago, has extensive experience as an arranger and orchestrator for Australian television, theatre and album. Arranging the music for Idol presents its own unique set of challenges for this talented musician.

“Trying to get all the good bits of the song in can kind of be a challenge,” says David. “You have to lay your wares on the table anywhere between a minute and half to two minutes – short and sweet. In an out; get to the point; you need to have flow and rhythm – there’s a lot to consider.”

“That’s what Erana [Idol’s Vocal Coach] and I do in consultation with the artists,” David continues. “But they pick the song, they choose how they want to do it; I want to make that very clear.”

”Ultimately, the buck stops with me,” says David of his new job. “But the great thing is you get great support around you, genuine experts in their field, and working with Erana is fantastic.”

As for the Idol contestants, David is only interested in one thing. “I told them the whole competition, that it’s television and all those things - I’m fully aware of and I fully appreciate,” he says. “But those things don’t interest me in the slightest. When it comes to the contestants, all I want is for them to sound the best that they can and for the music to sound the best that the music can be.”

With four of the wildcard performers soon set to complete the Final 12, David says he’s enjoying working with this year’s contestants. “They’re great; lovely and enthusiastic,” he says. “The mix you get of complete inexperience like Scott to the very experienced like Sabrina, it’s brilliant because you get all these influences as well and approach the music differently.”

As well as now shaping the Idol live shows as Musical Director, David still loves the thrill of performing. “What I love about playing live is you don’t even consider you’re playing for a million people - you’re just playing for the room…But it’s a really great gig!”