Morten Zeuthen (Born 1951)

cello

For over twenty years Morten Zeuthen has played a central role in Danish musical life, and has toured most of the world. He studied with among others Asger Lund Christiansen and Paul Tortelier. As a soloist he has appeared with all the Danish orchestras, playing both contemporary works and the older repertoire.

He has recorded cello concertos on CD by Per Nørgård, Poul Ruders, Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen and Bo Holten, and his double CD of the Bach cello suites has among other honours won the “Danish Grammy” as the best classical release of the year. As a soloist Morten Zeuthen has appeared with conductors like Kurt Sanderling, Norman Del Mar, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Jorma Panula.

Sometimes Morten Zeuthen also crosses musical boundaries, for example with jazzmen like Chick Corea, Kenneth Knudsen and Palle Mikkelborg. Besides all these activities he has been principal cellist in the Danish National Symphony Orchestra / DR. He has been awarded several prizes including Gade-Legatet and Dansk Musikerforbunds Hæderspris. Morten Zeuthen has been a member of the Kontra Quartet and is a professor at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen.

Live Dates

21/10/2011 MusicWeb International

Herman D. Koppel, Benjamin Koppel: Works for cello and piano
"Serious, sturdy, blazingly grand and brilliant ... Two Koppels in music that is unflinchingly serious and gripping."
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01/10/2011 Klassisk

Works for cello and piano
5/5 Stars

"Denne cd giver et sjældent blik ind i en familierelation på musikkens egne præmisser. Og til et glædeligt genhør med nogle af Herman D. Koppels mesterlige værker."
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30/08/2011 Politiken

Herman D. Koppel, Benjamin Koppel: Works for cello and piano
5/6 Hjerter

"Der er smæk for skillingen i serier af handlingsmættede forløb i stramme nyklassiske former, og ingen af de to erfarne musikere holder igen med de energiske udredninger"
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19/06/2011 Fyens Stiftstidende

Herman D. Koppel, Benjamin Koppel: Works for cello and piano
5/6 Stars

"Koppels poetiske soloværk fra 1971 ... får takket være Zeuthens formidable spil, der favner instrumentets kolossale spændvidde, en uafrystelig intensitet."
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04/03/2011 Classics Today (9/9)

Vagn Holmboe: The Complete String Quartets
"This important set belongs in the collection of anyone who cares about good 20th-century chamber music."
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01/01/2011 International Record Review

Vagn Holmboe: The Complete String Quartets
"Among the significant cycles of string quartets from the post-war era, that by Danish composer Vagn Holmboe is one of the most substantial surveying."
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17/12/2010 Classique Info

Vagn Holmboe: The Complete String Quartets
"Retenez votre souffle et plongez, la remontée sans paliers de décompression risque de s’avérer difficile mais gratifiante"
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01/11/2010 OPUS

Vagn Holmboe: The Complete String Quartets
5/5 Stars

"För Holmboekännare rekommenderar denna box förstås sig själv."
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01/11/2010 Ensemble

Vagn Holmboe: The Complete String Quartets
"Dem Kontra Quartet ist eine faszinierende Box gelungen."
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13/10/2010 Crescendo

Vagn Holmboe: The Complete String Quartets
"Erschließt sich hier eine Quelle eindringlichster Entdeckungen von einem kaum bekannten Giganten."
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19/09/2010 Musicweb International

Vagn Holmboe: The Complete String Quartets
“Holmboe’s quartets are one of the great treasures of the last century (…) With this box set comes a chance to discover them in performances of great accomplishment and dedication.”
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09/03/2006 Classics Today

L'Homme Armé: Works for Solo Cello
"There's great music awaiting your discovery here, as well as a fabulous cellist."
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03/11/2005 Politiken

L'Homme Armé - Works for Solo Cello
5/6 Hjerter

"Her modelleres og modificeres meningsfuldt og sammenhængsskabende, ofte med et skarpt blik for det dramatiske potentiale. Og så er der i øvrigt tale om rigtig smukt cellospil med stort teknisk overskud”
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03/11/1997 BBC Music Magazine

Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen: Orchestral Works
5/5 Stars

"The performance of the soloist, Morten Zeuthen (for whom it was written) and the orchestra are utterly gripping ... One of the most exciting CD's I've come across this year"
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15/01/1994 Gramophone

Vagn Holmboe: String Quartets Vol. 1
"Recommended with enthusiasm."
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15/01/1994

Vagn Holmboe: String Quartets Vol. 1
CANNES CLASSICAL AWARD
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15/07/1992 BBC Radio

Hans Abrahamsen and Poul Ruders: String Quartets
"The Kontra Quartet capture both the brusque quirkiness and the delicate pathos of these works."
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20/05/1992 Fanfare

Peter Arnold Heise: Chamber Music
"Amalie Malling is a formidable player."
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15/05/1992 American Record Guide

Peter Arnold Heise: Chamber Music
"Fine, idiomatic performances."
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Discography

	Works for cello and piano Herman D. Koppel, Benjamin Koppel CD 8.226088 (2011)
	The Complete String Quartets Vagn Holmboe CD 8.207001 (2010) 7 CD box set of all Holmboe's string quartets in the highly acclaimed recordings by the Kontra Quartet
	The Key Masterpieces Vagn Holmboe CD 8.226101-02 (2009) An outstanding introduction to the clear-sighted master of 20th-century Nordic music
	L'Homme Armé - Works for Solo Cello CD 8.226007 (2005) Monumental collection of new works for solo cello – virtuosic and powerful!
	Music for Cello and Piano Poul Rovsing Olsen CD 8.224222 (2003) The ethnomusicologist Rovsing Olsen was inspired by both Arab and French music
	String Quartets Vol. 7 Vagn Holmboe CD 8.224131 (2001) This unsurpassed series concludes with Holmboe’s very last work, completed by his pupil Per Nørgård
	String Quartets Vol. 6 Vagn Holmboe CD 8.224128 (2001) Penultimate CD in the definitive series with String Quartets 17, 19 and 20, written in the 1980s
	String Quartets Vol. 5 Vagn Holmboe CD 8.224127 (1999) Strygekvartet nr. 13-15, skrevet i en intens periode midt i 1970’erne
	String Quartets Rued Langgaard DCCD 9302A-B (1999)
	Piano Concerto Otto Malling CD 8.224114 (1999) One of the best Danish piano concertos – not a million miles from the famous one by Grieg
	String Quartets Vol. 4 Vagn Holmboe CD 8.224101 (1998) Three strong quartets from the beginning of the 1970s – a very fruitful period for Holmboe
	String Quartets Vol. 3 Vagn Holmboe CD 8.224073 (1997) Grand recordings of String Quartets 7, 8 and 9, composed in the mid-1960s
	Orchestral Works Pelle Gudmundsen-Holmgreen CD 8.224060 (1997) Three key works by the caustic, energetic absurdist of modern Danish music
	Cello and Piano CD 8.224052 (1996)
	Orchestral Works Henning Wellejus CD 8.224040 (1996)
	String Quartets Vol. 2 Vagn Holmboe CD 8.224026 (1996) String Quartets 2, 5 and 6, the starting shots for Holmboe’s immersion in the genre
	Works for Cello Per Nørgård CD 8.224007 (1995) Five highly varied fruits of Per Nørgård’s fascination with the cello
	String Quartets Vol. 1 Vagn Holmboe DCCD 9203 (1993)
	String Quartets Hans Abrahamsen and Poul Ruders DCCD 9006 (1992)
	Concertos Per Nørgård DCCD 9002 (1992)
	Chamber Music Peter Arnold Heise DCCD 9113 (1992)