Musician. He was recognized as a Danish composer and organist. A child prodigy in music, he gave his first public organ recital when he was 11 years old. Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg was in the audience and wrote an enthusiastic letter to the boy's mother. He then concentrated on composing and in 1913, when he was 19, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra premiered his Symphony No. 1. In the following years several of his works were performed in Germany and Austria, but the late Romantic style of his music was rejected by critics and audiences in his native Denmark. He composed more than 400 works - 16 symphonies and many orchestral works, 16 string quartets, piano and organ works, and songs - but only a few of them were performed during his lifetime. He died a lonely and bitter man in the town of Ribe, where he had been making a living as a cathedral organist since 1940. It was not until in the late 1960s that musicians and critics became aware of his often unique musical expression, and he is now considered one of Denmark's greatest composers. All his symphonies and many other works have been recorded on CD. In 2002 his allegorical opera "Antikrist" (Antichrist) from 1923, which originally had been rejected by The Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, was finally staged and became a huge success, with recordings on CD and DVD. The British magazine "The Gramophone" named the latter "DVD of the Month."
Musician. He was recognized as a Danish composer and organist. A child prodigy in music, he gave his first public organ recital when he was 11 years old. Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg was in the audience and wrote an enthusiastic letter to the boy's mother. He then concentrated on composing and in 1913, when he was 19, the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra premiered his Symphony No. 1. In the following years several of his works were performed in Germany and Austria, but the late Romantic style of his music was rejected by critics and audiences in his native Denmark. He composed more than 400 works - 16 symphonies and many orchestral works, 16 string quartets, piano and organ works, and songs - but only a few of them were performed during his lifetime. He died a lonely and bitter man in the town of Ribe, where he had been making a living as a cathedral organist since 1940. It was not until in the late 1960s that musicians and critics became aware of his often unique musical expression, and he is now considered one of Denmark's greatest composers. All his symphonies and many other works have been recorded on CD. In 2002 his allegorical opera "Antikrist" (Antichrist) from 1923, which originally had been rejected by The Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, was finally staged and became a huge success, with recordings on CD and DVD. The British magazine "The Gramophone" named the latter "DVD of the Month."
Bio by: Erik Skytte
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