JOSEFINE OPSAHL (DK) (B. 1992) UNITES THE CLASSICAL ROOTS OF CELLO PLAYING WITH A LIBERATING OPENNESS TO THE INSTRUMENT, SOUNDS AND GENRE. SHE STUDIED CLASSICAL AND CONTEMPORARY CELLO PLAYING AT THE ROYAL DANISH ACADEMY OF MUSIC (DK) AND NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY (IL, USA). SHE QUICKLY MADE A NAME FOR HERSELF AS ONE OF DENMARKS MOST EXCITING YOUNG MUSICIANS WITH A RADICAL AND INNOVATIVE APPROACH TO CELLO PLAYING WITHIN THE CLASSICAL GENRE AND BEYOND.
ALREADY DURING HER STUDIES SHE RECEIVED A GREAT NUMBER OF AWARDS AS AN AUTHORITY OF CONTEMPORARY MUSIC PERFORMANCE GIVING NUMEROUS WORLD PREMIERES OF WORKS OFTEN DEDICATED TO HER AND COLLABORATING WITH COMPOSERS SUCH AS SOFIA GUBAIDULINA AND NIELS ROSING SCHOW. INSPIRED BY HER MANY COLLABORATIONS WITH AVANTGARDE ARTISTS AND PERFORMERS IT WAS INEVITABLE THAT SHE WOULD TAKE UP COMPOSITION HERSELF RESULTING IN A RANGE OF WORKS FOR SOLO CELLO WITH ELECTRONICS AS WELL AS MUSIC FOR SMALLER ENSEMBLES, THEATRE AND SOUND INSTALLATIONS. HER ROLE AS A CREATOR OF ADVANCED MUSICAL SCORES IS ALSO FUNDAMENTAL IN HER TWO GROUNDBREAKING ENSEMBLES WITH WHOM SHE IS TOURING ALL OVER THE WORLD, THE SOUND COLLECTIVE WE LIKE WE AND THE PROGRESSIVE CHAMBER QUARTET KOTTOS – BOTH PIONEER ENSEMBLES THAT CHALLENGE THE DOGMAS OF CLASSICAL MUSIC.
JOSEFINE’S INNOVATIVE APPROACH HAS MADE HER HIGHLY SOUGHT AFTER IN FIELDS OF CLASSICAL, CONTEMPORARY, AND AVANT-GARDE MUSIC, AS WELL AS OUTSIDE THE CLASSICAL MUSIC FRAME WHERE SHE HAS COLLABORATED AND TOURED WITH LEGENDARY ARTISTS SUCH AS EMINEM, MØ, EFTERKLANGAND STEFFEN BRANDT.
HER ALBUMS HAVE RECEIVED RAVE REVIEWS AND AWARDS, SUCH AS THE DANISH RADIO P2’S LISTENERS’ PRIZE 2017 AND RECENTLY THE ROUND GLASS MUSIC AWARD 2018 (US) AND ARE DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT EUROPE AS WELL AS NORTH AMERICA AND ASIA.