Rasmus Schjærff Kjøller
During his student years at the Royal Danish Academy of Music with the professors Geir Draugsvoll and James Crabb, Rasmus Schjærff Kjøller has received many grants and scholarships; in 2012 he was awarded the annual 'Small' Léonie Sonning Music Prizes. Furthermore he has been studying in Toronto with Joseph Macerollo and he has played in masterclasses with Matti Rantanen, Mika Vayrynen and Claudio Jaccomucci.
As a prize winner in international competitions he has played in festivals around Europe, ao. Paris, Heidelberg, Malmö and Vilnius and cooperated with New Music Ensemble Ars Nova in Malmö (Sweden), the Jutland Ensemble, the Esbjerg Ensemble and the Royal Danish Orchestra. He have had his Carnegie Hall debut in 2011 with MYTHOS, classical accordion duo, and in October 2013 he has debut in Het Concert Gebouw in Amsterdam.
As a performer, Rasmus S. Kjøller openness to music from the whole palette of genres, from the classical repertoire over contemporary music to tango and pop/rock, and he often collaborates with composers from the from today's avant-garde music and the pop/rock scene.
Rasmus performed in a production of Jarry´s absurd theatre piece "Ubu Roi” (1896) that in 2008 was nominated for the highest Danish theatre award, the Reumert Award, and he was likewise seen and heard in “The Apple Tree of Fortune” at Anemone Teatret, a tiny but renowned Danish venue. There he arrange, composed and played all the music.
Rasmus takes a deep professional interest in the pedagogical approach to his instrument, the classical accordion, and a Kodaly-based accordion teaching book is beginning to take shape; currently he teaches at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen.