Bent Sørensen

The Danish composer Bent Sørensen (born July 1958) received his musical education from, amongst others, the composers Per Nørgård and Ib Nørholm.

His breakthrough came with the first string quartet Alman (1984), performed by the Arditti string quartet. This was followed with a large amount of significant works, and he is now renowned as one of the leading composers from the Nordic countries.

In 1996 Sørensen received the Nordic Council Music Prize for the violin concerto Sterbende Gärten. He has also received several other awards. In 2004 his first opera Under Himlen (Under the Sky) – with libretto by Peter Rasmussen – had its world premiere at the Det Kongelige Teater i København. Asle and Alida is his second opera, about 20 years after the first.

In 2007 he was Festival composer at Bergen International Festival (Festspillene i Bergen). His work Sounds Like You (2008) for actors and symphony orchestra, was premiered at the opening of the Bergen International Festival in 2009, conducted by Eivind Gullberg Jensen.

Sørensen's second piano concerto La Mattina (2009) was written for the pianist Leif Ove Andsnes. He has also composed a Trumpet concerto for Tine Thing Helseth and a Clarinet Concerto for Martin Fröst.

Bent Sørensen is also professor of composition at The Royal Danish Academy of Music (Det Kongelige Danske Musikkonservatorium )– and visiting professor of composition at The Royal Academy of Music in London.

For Oslo Church Music Festival he has composed the St Matthew Passion, which was planned as a world premiere in 2020, but was postponed due to the Covid-situation, and performed as streaming the following year – without audience. This work was also recorded by The Norwegian Soloists' Choir and Ensemble Allegria. In March this year (2025) his St John Passion Part 1 (also called Season 1) will have its world premiere at the same festival, and Part 2 is planned to be premiered in 2026.

You can read more about Sørensen on his home page (link)

This article was updated February 2025