Niels Eje (born

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

1954) is a Danish

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

and oboist. Niels Eje was educated at the Carl Nielsen Academy of Music 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 ...

1974 to 1979. Thereafter he studied with

Lothar Koch Lothar Koch (1 July 1935 – 16 March 2003) was an oboist. He was one of the two principal oboists in the Berlin Philharmonic during the Herbert von Karajan era. He was also an active soloist and was regarded as one of the greatest oboe players ...

of the Berlin Philharmonic. His career included a position as principal oboist in the

Danish National Symphony Orchestra The Danish National Symphony Orchestra (Danish: ''DR Symfoniorkestret''; English abbreviation "DNSO"), is a Danish orchestra based in Copenhagen. The DNSO is the principal orchestra of DR (Danish Broadcasting Corporation). The DRSO is based at th ...

, (1979 to 1990) performances in Europe, USA and Japan as soloist and

chamber musician Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of Musical instrument, instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a Great chamber, palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music ...

. Niels Eje has composed and arranged a large repertoire for different classical ensembles as well as music for concerts, theatre, TV and documentaries. He is the founder of Trio Rococo (harp, Berit Spaelling, oboe Niels Eje, and cello, Inge Mulvad,) whose album 'Norwegian Wood' was released worldwide. Niels Eje has participated on several recordings with various artists in a number of genres, including with

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

on the album ''

Aura Aura most commonly refers to: * Aura (paranormal), a field of luminous multicolored radiation around a person or object * Aura (symptom), a symptom experienced before a migraine or seizure Aura may also refer to: Places Extraterrestrial * 1488 ...

'', and with Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, Berit Spaelling, Inge Mulvad in the album ''In the Name of Music'' In 1998 Niels Eje founded the

interdisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...

project Musica Humana Research together with Professor Lars Heslet, Copenhagen University Hospital. The research projects were aimed at creating a new specially designed music environment in hospitals and with scientific methods documenting the effect. The music and research documentation is published under the name MusiCure.

Grants & Awards

* Jacob Gade Grant * Børge Schrøder and Herta Finnerups grant for special achievements in music * The "Jante Knuser Cultural Award" 2001 for best entrepreneur activity in the field of "cultural business" idea in Denmark - given to Niels Eje by the Ministry of Economic and Business Affairs, Denmark. * Gold Award for the Trio Rococo recording "Classical Mystery Tour/Norwegian Wood" * 2007 Blair Sadler AwardBlair Sadler Competition Awardees
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Selected list of works

* ''Faries and Tales'' dedicated to James Galway and

Safri Duo Safri Duo is a Danish electronic percussion duo composed of Uffe Savery (born 5 April 1966) and Morten Friis (born 21 August 1968). Initially classically oriented, they later made a track mixing both tribal sound and modern electronica. Released ...

* ''Pip’s Theme'', from ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. It depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip (Great Expectations), Pip (the book is a ''bildungsroman''; a coming-of-age story). It ...

'' by

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

for oboe,

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

harp The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orche ...

and electronics * ''Biddy'', from ''Great Expectations'', violin/

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

and

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

* ''

Miss Havisham Miss Havisham is a character in the Charles Dickens novel ''Great Expectations'' (1861). She is a wealthy spinster, once jilted at the altar, who insists on wearing her wedding dress for the rest of her life. She lives in a ruined mansion with ...

House'',

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

, harp and

electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...

* ''Estella'', violin, cello, harp * ''Fragile Light'', oboe, cello, harp and electronics( Trio Rococo) * ''Infinity'', oboe, cello and harp (Trio Rococo) * ''Asian Echoes'', oboe, cello and harp (trio Rococo) * ''Sakhalin Fantasy'', flute, oboe, cello and piano * ''The Power of The Harp'', harp solo ( Berit Spaelling) * ''Ablaze suite The Vikings'' Large ensemble and

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

* ''Sakura suite'' Japanese folk songs for piano and wind quintet * ''Octoman'', wind

octet Octet may refer to: Music * Octet (music), ensemble consisting of eight instruments or voices, or composition written for such an ensemble ** String octet, a piece of music written for eight string instruments *** Octet (Mendelssohn), 1825 compos ...

* ''Oboe in Orbit'', oboe and electronics * ''The Storyteller'', large ensemble and electronics * ''Great Expectations suite'', after Dickens (''Ablaze'') * More than 30 titles for the Musica Humana research project

Discography

With Trio Rococo

* 1988: ''Sonata and Divertimenti'':

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

arranged by Niels Eje * 1991: ''Crystal Bridge'', Music by

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz composer, pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain", " 500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba", and ...

Palle Mikkelborg Palle Mikkelborg (born 6 March 1941) is a Danish jazz trumpet player, composer, arranger and record producer. He is self-taught on the trumpet, although he studied conducting at the Royal Music Conservatory in Copenhagen. He became a professio ...

, Thomas Clausen and Niels Eje * 1992: ''Trio Rococo plays Rococo Trios''. Music by

Johann Wilhelm Hertel Johann Wilhelm Hertel (9 October 1727 – 14 June 1789) was a German composer, harpsichord and violin player. He was born in Eisenach, into a family of musicians. His father, Johann Christian Hertel (1697–1754) was ''Konzertmeister'' (from 1 ...

and

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (8 March 1714 – 14 December 1788), also formerly spelled Karl Philipp Emmanuel Bach, and commonly abbreviated C. P. E. Bach, was a German Classical period musician and composer, the fifth child and sec ...

, arranged by Niels Eje * 1992: ''Hexerie eller Blind Alarm'' (stage music) – Music by Niels Eje (cassette) * 1994: ''Classical Mystery Tour'', Trio Rococo plays

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

Gefion Records GFO 20112 * 1994: ''Sangen er et Eventyr'' (The song is a fairy-tale), Music by Frederik Magle – feat. Trio Rococo (arranged by Niels Eje), NHØP, and others * 1996: ''Friends'' Music by

Brian Wilson Brian Douglas Wilson (born June 20, 1942) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who co-founded the Beach Boys. Often called a genius for his novel approaches to pop composition, extraordinary musical aptitude, and m ...

Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...

and Niels Eje. Gefion Records GFO 20120 * 1998: ''In The Name Of Music'', Trio Rococo and NHØP. Gefion Records 3672634848639 * 2001: ''No Time At All'' – Michael Vesterskov (‘Bromzkij Garden’) * 2002: ''Den danske sang til hver en tid'' (Danish Songs), Tritonus Choir & Trio Rococo. Arranged by John Höybye and Niels Eje. Exlibris

Niels Eje

* 1993: ''Pride of The Ocean'' (single) – Music by Niels Eje * 1997: ''Ablaze'', Music by Niels Eje, Gefion Records GFO 2012

With Selandia Wind Ensemble

* 1989: Wind Chamber Music I – Danish and French composers * 1990: Wind Chamber Music II – W.A. Mozart * 1992: Wind Chamber Music III – Bach & Villa-Lobos * 1999: Wind Chamber Music IV – Carl Nielsen

With Solisti Pro Musica

* 1990: Sonatas & Arias – J. S. Bach * 2005: Klassisk Jul – Merete Hjortsø – (Niels Eje: oboe & arrangement.)

MusiCure

Music composed and produced by Niels Eje and Inge Mulvad Eje: * 2003: MusiCure 1. ''The Journey'' * 2003: MusiCure 2. ''Equator'' * 2004: MusiCure 3. ''Fairy Tales'' * 2004: MusiCure 4. ''Northern Light'' * 2005: MusiCure 5. ''Seasons'' * 2006: MusiCure 6. ''Waves'' * 2007: MusiCure 7. ''Horizons'' * 2008: MusiCure 8. ''Peace'' * 2009: MusiCure 9. ''Scandinavia'' * 2010: MusiCure 10. ''Dreams'' * 2011: MusiCure ''Nature Editions'' (2-CD set) * 2013: MusiCure ''Moonlight & Nature Meditation'' (2-CD set)

Other CD releases where Niels Eje appears (selected)

* 1985: ''

'':

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, COL 463351 2,

. Danish Radio Big Band. Conductor and composer:

. * 1990: ''Homage/Once Upon a Time'' – NHØP/Mikkelborg * 1993: ''Kærlighedens Triumf'' (stage music) – Arranged by Niels Eje (cassette) * 1995: The musical ''Atlantis'' – Peter Spies et al. (oboe solo on ''Morgen på Atlantis'') * 1995: ''Du Kan Få Mig Til Alt'' –

Lis Sørensen Lis Sørensen (born 28 May 1955) is a Danish pop singer. In the 1970s she worked with Anne Linnet in Shit & Chanel and Anne Linnet Band. In 1983 she released her first solo album. She is also known for being the first artist to record Ednaswa ...

and

Stig Kreutzfeldt Rugsted & Kreutzfeldt is a Danish singing duo made up of Jens Rugsted and Stig Kreutzfeldt, and were very active from 1979 to 1984 and had a series of very successful albums in a smooth West Coast rock style. Their 1979 song "Jeg ved det godt" be ...

(solo on ‘Vågen I Drømmeland’) * 1997: ''Michael Brydenfelt, Trompet'' – (Niels Eje soloist in J.S. Bach Brandenburg Concerto no. 2) * 1999: ''Imprints'' – by Jan Lippert * 2001: ''Misty Paradise'' – Hanne Boel * 2001: ''King of Nothing'' – Henrik Andersen * 2006: ''Vores Bedste'' – Danser med Drenge, and others

References

External links

Niels Eje website

MusiCure

The Research

Trio Rococo
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eje, Niels 1954 births Living people Musicians from Copenhagen Danish composers Male composers Danish oboists Male oboists