Bjarke Mogensen is
an astonishment on record.
Once heard, never forgotten.

Arts Journal

ABOUT

Glad to Welcome You

Born and raised on the Island of Bornholm, Bjarke Mogensen quickly made a name for himself as an internationally acclaimed accordion virtuoso and as a versatile musician with a keen ear for different styles.

At the age of 13 he made his solo debut with the Munich Symphony Orchestra in a German TV broadcast with millions of viewers. Since then a great curiosity and search for new sounds and expressions has taken him on musical paths where few other musicians have ventured before as a highly sought-after soloist in the classical music world.

Album for Astor – a Piazzolla tribute album (2022)

The new Piazzolla album has arrived!

All my life I have admired, studied and performed the music of the extraordinary Argentinian composer, Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992).

So, when I was offered the chance to publish a whole instrumental Piazzolla album of my own for the centenary of his birth, I decided to base my tribute solely on Piazzolla titles but also dived headlong into designing a varied and comprehensive listening experience, an hour of interchanging accordion solos, instrumental duos, and pieces that I arranged for myself and a small group of mixed instruments.

About the album:

‘The music is all Astor but with a touch of Bjarke here and there and maybe everywhere, in fact. There are no singers involved, but Piazzolla’s music sings, and our instruments sing, and at every corner there is melancholy, tripping feet, fast figures, and perhaps even the scent and atmosphere of Buenos Aires.’

News

Receiving The Carl Nielsen Prize — A first for the Accordion

I’m deeply humbled and thrilled to share that I am one of the recipients of the Carl Nielsen Prize 2025— one of Denmark’s most prestigious honors in music.

This recognition is especially meaningful as I am the first accordionist to receive this award. It’s a milestone not just for me personally, but also for the instrument and its growing place within the world of classical and contemporary music.

Over the years, I’ve had the great pleasure of engaging deeply with Carl Nielsen’s music — arranging and transcribing a number of his works for the accordion. This includes new orchestrations for the Danish Chamber Players and MYTHOS -accordion duo of pieces such as the Helios Overture, Saga-Drøm, the Aladdin Suite, and a selection of piano pieces. Bringing Nielsen’s sound world into new contexts has been both a challenge and a joy.

My heartfelt thanks to the Carl Nielsen and Anne Marie Carl-Nielsen Foundation, to the composers, collaborators, and audiences who continually inspire me, and to everyone who has supported this journey.

This award is a powerful reminder of the accordion’s expressive potential, and I’m excited to keep pushing its boundaries. Some years back MYTHOS released a recording of my duo-arrangement of the magnificent Helios Overture which you can give a listen on all major platforms:

As part of the celebration, there will be a prize ceremony and concert on October 24, where I will perform as soloist with the Odense Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Brad Lubman. I’m very much looking forward to performing with Brad again, following our first collaboration in 2014 for the Danish premiere of Christian Winther Christensen’s Double Concerto for Cello and Accordion with the Danish National Symphony.

A huge congrats as well to fellow recipients composers Kirstine Lindemann, Signe Lykke, and Bára Gísladóttir; and fellow musicians Michala Petri and Stephen Milling.