Mikael Jorgensen (born June 4, 1972) is an American musician known as the
pianist
A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
and
keyboardist
A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...
for the band
Wilco
Wilco is an American alternative rock band based in Chicago, Illinois. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo following singer Jay Farrar's departure. Wilco's lineup changed frequently dur ...
as well as a member of the bands Pronto and Quindar.
Career
Prior to his days in Chicago and with Wilco, Mikael honed his musical skills in
New Brunswick, New Jersey
New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat, seat of government of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.
Jorgensen, an ex-Chicago-based engineer and now full-time musician initially came aboard Wilco in 2002 to perform real-time sound manipulations on the ''
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
''Yankee Hotel Foxtrot'' is the fourth studio album by American rock band Wilco, first released on September 18, 2001. Recording sessions for the album began in late 2000. These sessions, which were documented for the film '' I Am Trying to Break ...
'' tour, sitting just off stage left. As the tour rolled on, Jorgensen gradually moved onto the stage itself, manning his laptop as well as taking on more and more keyboard duties.
"It became apparent that Mike was a very proficient piano player that could do a lot more than we were using him for," says Wilco singer/songwriter
Jeff Tweedy
Jeffrey Scot Tweedy (born August 25, 1967) is an American musician, songwriter, author, and record producer best known as the singer and guitarist of the band Wilco. Tweedy, originally from Belleville, Illinois, started his music career in high s ...
. "At that point, he started becoming a full-fledged member of the band, contributing parts to the new songs and even handling more of the nuts-and-bolts architecture of the older songs."
He first appeared on Wilco's 2004 release, ''
A Ghost Is Born
''A Ghost Is Born'' is the fifth studio album by American alternative rock band Wilco. Released on June 22, 2004, it features singer Jeff Tweedy on lead guitar more than any previous Wilco album. The band streamed the album online free, and offe ...
''. On that album, he received songwriting credit for "Hell is Chrome" and "Theologians".
Personal life
Jorgensen's father was born in
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
but moved to the United States in the 1950s, and his mother was born in Hedmark,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
. He has earned a degree at
DeVry University
DeVry University () is a private for-profit university with its headquarters in Naperville, Illinois. It was founded in 1931 by Herman A. DeVry and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. DeVry is predominantly an online educator but ...
in
North Brunswick, New Jersey
North Brunswick is a township in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. It is centrally located in the Raritan Valley region within the New York Metropolitan area. At the 2020 United States census, the population was 43,905, reflecting ...