Niels Eje Bio

The story about the composer Niels Eje
Niels Eje - biography
Born in Copenhagen and raised in a family of artists (painters, graphic designers, enamel artists, sculptors etc.) and played a number of different instruments from an early age, including piano, guitar and saxophone.
Received from the early seventies oboe lessons from Bjørn Carl Nielsen at the ‘Danish Music Academy’ and began in 1974 studies with Professor Jørgen Hammergaard at the Carl Nielsen Academy of Music.
Was in 1978 awarded the ’The Jacob Gade Grant’ for young musicians. Further oboe studies with Lothar Koch (Berlin Philharmonic) at The International Summer Academy “Mozarteum” in Salzburg, with diploma (1984). Joined after audition the position as Principal Oboe in Danish Radio Concert Orchestra/Sinfonietta in February 1979, and was the following four years employed in this orchestra.
In 1983 was Niels Eje appointed the position as Co-Principal Oboe in the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, but chose in 1990 to resign his position in the Orchestra and focus on composition, soloist and chamber music activities.

Participates as oboist in Palle Mikkelborg’s performance of ‘AURA’ with Danish Radio Big Band, at the Sonning Prize award to Miles Davis 1984, and the following recording of the work, where the movement ‘White’ was written for trumpet, oboe and electronics (Miles Davis and Niels Eje).

Co-founder of several ensembles: ‘Trio Rococo’, Wind Ensemble ‘Selandia’ and ‘Solisti Pro Musica’. Arranged and composed a lot of material for Trio Rococo, especially within a repertoire of music that crosses genre boundaries – so-called ‘crossover’ music (‘classical’ versions of Beatles and Beach Boys songs, music by Chick Corea, Quincy Jones, Paul Simon and others).

In 1994 Trio Rococo released an album with Beatles classics in new arrangements by Niels Eje and Inge Mulvad Eje. This album “Classical Mystery Tour” was on the charts for over a year and received a Gold award as the first ‘classical’ ensemble ever in Denmark. Since the mid-nineties, Trio Rococo also collaborated with the famous Bass player Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (Oscar Peterson trio), and in 1998 a tour of Denmark with Trio Rococo and NHØP was recorded and released as the album “In The Name Of Music”.

1998 was also the year where the interdisciplinary project “Musica Humana” was initiated by Inge Mulvad and Niels Eje, together with Professor, MD Lars Heslet, head of the intensive care unit 4131 at the Danish University Hospital in Copenhagen. The project was financially supported by the Egmont Foundation with a total of three grants to cover the costs for the production of a new specially composed music program, and initiate research in this music’s effect on hospitalized patients. The idea behind the creation of specially composed music for stress relief and treatment arose out of the Musica Humana project, in which the core idea being to both create and simultaneously scientifically document the new music program, which was created from scratch specifically for therapeutic purposes.
From this starting point the foundation was laid for the development of the new original music program, which later got the overall title ‘MusiCure’, and at the same time a group of music therapists, doctors and nurses carried out a number of studies and research projects with the music. These studies took place primarily at University Hospitals in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and in the United States.

Also during the late nineties the company ‘Amazing Music World.com’ was founded. One of the world’s first companies to present and distribute digital sheet music online. Some years later the company changed its name to ‘SheetMusicNow.com’ and as founders of the company Inge and Niels Eje were awarded the Danish ‘Janteknuser Culture Award 2001′ by the Danish The Ministry of Business and Growth, and were together with the Danish Minister for Research invited to a meeting with Mikhail Gorbatjov in Moscow.

Since 2006, Niels Eje has been working full time with composition and production of the MusiCure series, preparation of special music programs for research, sound design and lectures at home and abroad. Besides composing and producing music, these activities have mainly included lectures, presentations and sound design implementation in Norway, Sweden, England, Austria and the United States (including the American hospital chain Kaiser Permanente, Children’s Hospital San Diego, ‘Get Well Network’ and ‘Society for the Arts in Healthcare’). Received together with Inge Mulvad Eje ”1st Prize Professional” at the ’Blair L. Sadlers Healing Arts Competition’, Nashville USA 2007. The prize was given for the creation of MusiCure.

Link to Niels Eje's website

Selected works:
Fairies and Tales – Dedicated to James Galway and Safri Duo
Pip’s Theme* – Oboe, cello, harp and electronics
Biddy* – Violin (Flute) and piano
Ms. Havisham’s House* – Violin, Harp and electronics
Estella* – Violin, Cello, Harp and electronics
The Marsh Land* – Oboe, cello, harp and electronics
Fragile Light – Oboe, cello and harp & Fragile Light Theme – Harp solo
Infinity – Oboe, cello and harp
Asian Echoes – Oboe, cello and harp
Sakhalin Fantasy – Flute, oboe, cello and Harpsichord
The Power of The Harp – Harp solo
Ablaze suite (The Vikings) – Large ensemble and Soprano
(Fjordens Pryd)
Sakura suite (3 Japanese folk songs) – Piano and wind quintet
Octoman – Wind 8tet
Oboe in Orbit – Oboe and electronics
The Storyteller – Large ensemble and electronics
Hexerie Suite** – Oboe, cello, harp and electronics
* Stage music for “Great Expectations” after Dickens
** Stage music for “Hexerie eller Blind Alarm” after Holberg

MusiCure – music composed and produced by Niels Eje & 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)

Trio Rococo:
1988: Sonata and Divertimenti – Mozart Arr. by Niels Eje
1991: Crystal Bridge – Music by Chick Corea, Palle Mikkelborg, Thomas Clausen and Niels Eje
1992: Trio Rococo plays Rococo Trios – Music by Hertel, C.P.E. Bach a.o.
1992: Hexerie eller Blind Alarm (stage music) – Music by Niels Eje (cassette)
1994: Classical Mystery Tour – Trio Rococo plays Beatles – aka Norwegian Wood (in USA & Japan)
1994: Sangen er et Eventyr – F. Magle – feat. Trio Rococo (arr. Niels Eje), NHØP, and others
1996: Friends – Trio Rococo plays Brian Wilson, Paul Simon & Niels Eje
1998: In The Name Of Music – Trio Rococo and NHØP

PRIZES AND GRANTS:
The Jacob Gade Grant (Jacob Gades legat), 1978
Børge Schrøder and wife Herta Finnerup’s music scholarship, 1990.
”Jante Kultur Prisen” (together with Inge Mulvad Eje), Erhvervsfremme-styrelsen, 2001. (Entreprenour prize from the Danish Ministry of Business and Growth)
Gold award for “Classical Mystery Tour”, Trio Rococo, 1994.
Egmont Foundation, three grants with support to create MusiCure and initiate Musica Humana Research 1998, 2000, 2003.
First Place Professional prize at ’The Blair Sadler Healing Arts Competition’, under ’The Society for the Arts in Healthcare’, Nashville, USA, 2007.

TOURING AND TRAVELING WITH ORCHESTRAS, ENSEMBLES AND LECTURING 1980-2013:

Scandinavia, Greenland, USA, England, Germany, Austria, France, Mexico, Japan.

Tack

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