Bjarke Mogensen made his international debut at the age of 13 in a televised concert on ZDF as a soloist with the Munich Symphony Orchestra. Since then, he has developed into one of Denmark's most versatile and distinctive classical musicians. Many remember him as the winner of DR's music competition Games for lifewhere he impressed viewers and judges alike with his unusual instrument and remarkable musicianship. In 2012, he made history as the first accordion player to win 1st prize at the European Broadcast Union's prestigious soloist competition in Bratislava.
Bjarke Mogensen's musical curiosity has led to collaborations with star musicians such as Gidon Kremer and Tatjana Masurenko, as well as cross-genre artists such as Steffen Brandt, Henrik Koefoed, Bent Fabricius-Bjerre and Benny Andersen.
He has also made a name for himself as a chamber musician: With his accordion duo MYTHOS, he won the P2 Chamber Music Competition with a sensational interpretation of Stravinsky's Petrouchka for two accordions.
His repertoire ranges from original compositions and arrangements of classical works to folk music and completely new compositions. His pioneering work has inspired the creation of over 60 new works for accordion - solo, chamber and orchestral - by some of today's most prominent composers.
In recent years, Bjarke Mogensen has been very active on the international stage: In 2024, he was named P2 Artist, and in 2025 he has been nominated for the Anne Marie and Carl Nielsen Honour Award. Upcoming performances include a leading role in the critically acclaimed production of DSCH with Norwegian Chamber Orchestra and Pekka Kuusisto after a series of critically acclaimed performances at the Southbank Centre in London and the Bergen International Festival.
Bjarke Mogensen plays a Pigini Mythos No.5, often described as the accordion's answer to a Stradivarius. But his musical performances are rarely limited to the usual 12 notes per octave, so it's not unusual to see him on his custom-built quarter-tone accordion tuned to 24 notes per octave.
