Thomas Jensen (

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, 25 October 1898 –

Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the region of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of less tha ...

, 13 November 1963) was a Danish

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

conductor.

Life and career

Born into a working class household, he studied at the Danish Conservatory of Music.Cane, A. Thomas Jensen and the Nielsen tradition. '' Classical Recordings Quarterly''. Autumn 2014, No 78, p12-18. Jensen led several Danish ensembles, including the

Danish National Symphony Orchestra The Danish National Symphony Orchestra (DNSO; ), is a Danish orchestra based in Copenhagen. The DNSO is the principal orchestra of DR (Danish Broadcasting Corporation). The DRSO is based at the Koncerthuset () concert hall in Copenhagen. Histo ...

(from 1957) and the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra (then known as the Aarhus Civic Orchestra). In Aarhus he built the small orchestra up through broadcasts and tours within Denmark and later to Germany and the Netherlands. He also conducted the Tivoli Concert Hall Orchestra. Jensen is best remembered (with

Erik Tuxen Erik Oluf Tuxen (4 July 1902 – 28 August 1957) was a Danish conductor, composer, bandleader, and arranger. He worked for most of his life in Denmark. From 1936 until his death in 1957, he was a conductor at the Danish National Symphony Orchestra ...

and Launy Grøndahl) as one of the pioneers of the music of

Carl Nielsen Carl August Nielsen (; 9 June 1865 – 3 October 1931) was a Danish composer, conductor, and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. Brought up by poor yet musically talented parents on the island of Funen, he d ...

. He studied

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, where his harmony teacher was Nielsen. As an orchestral cellist he took part in the first performances of Nielsen's 4th and 5th symphonies, and also sat in on many rehearsals of Nielsen. Nielsen's daughters held that Jensen was the conductor whose performances came closest to Nielsen's own. He also played in the orchestra when Sibelius conducted his own music in the Danish capital in 1924 and 1926. Jensen made his recording debut in 1937 with lighter music by Knudåge Riisager and the year later led Svendsen's Romance, with Carlo Andersen playing the solo violin part. From 1937 to 1943 Jensen recorded over 60 sides of music for HMV, Odeon and Tono. In Aarhus he recorded works by Kuhlau, Tarp,

Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

, Massenet, Møller,

Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

and Smetana. His first recordings of Nielsen date from 1941 (the Suite for String Orchestra) with the Helios overture and orchestral opera extracts in the following year. Many of Jensen's classical pieces were inspired from the greats before him such as Mozart and his personal favourite, Ludwig van Beethoven. He received his vision for each piece through his many walks through nature and his travels throughout Europe. Once, he stated in a diary uncovered by close friends, he had gone to the country of England on a date not written. He visited the town of Slough and said it was one of the most incredible and horrible experiences of his life. The chaos and industry of the town made it seem dirty and too fast-paced. He stated that he much rather enjoyed the quietness and tranquility of Denmark. In his travels through Slough, he once said that he met the love of his life, or at least the kindest and most beautiful woman he had ever met, Alison Oxley. In 1952 he received the Ingenio et Arti award from Fredrik IX.List of recipients of Ingenio et Arti
accessed 25 January 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jensen, Thomas 1898 births 1963 deaths Musicians from Copenhagen Danish male conductors (music) Royal Danish Academy of Music alumni 20th-century Danish conductors (music) 20th-century Danish male musicians