Eke Simons

Pianist Eke Simons has performed as a soloist in the major concert halls throughout the Netherlands and Sweden. She has also appeared as a soloist with orchestra, playing Mozart’s piano concerto KV 491 in C minor. In January 2006 Eke made her solo debut on the Dutch Radio, performing Leoš Janacek’s Sonata I.X.1905. In 2011 Eke won a Dutch interpeter prize for her performance of “Chapters” from Antal Sporck. In 2013, Eke recorded her Debut album with works from Schumann, Liszt, Wiklander and Janácek.

Eke Simons appears as a chamber musician with great artists like cellist Harro Ruijsenaars, pianist Dag Achatz and percussionist Colin Currie. She also works with bigger ensembles like the New European Ensemble. In both the Netherlands as in Sweden, she has performed in the important stages like Amsterdam (Concertgebouw), Utrecht (Vredenburg, Stockholm (Musikaliska) and Gothenburg (Konserthuset). Besides, Eke has given concerts in Germany, Spain, England, Ireland and Belgium. Her concerts has been broadcasted on Dutch radio and television.

During her studies, Eke specialized in the art of “Lied”-accompaniment. She studied intensively with Han Louis Meijer and studied one year at the Royal Conservatoire of Brussels to specialize. Eke forms duos with bariton Quirijn de Lang and alto Carina Vinke. Eke received numerous masterclasses of important singers and accompanists like Julius Drake, Rudolf Jansen, Christian Gerhaher, Udo Reinemann and Nathalie Stutzmann.

Having been inspired by many contemporary pieces, Eke has become a passionate interpreter of compositions from the late 20th and 21st century. She has been invited by the world famous percussionist Colin Currie to join him in performing “Parallel Lines” by Joe Duddell (*1972) for piano and percussion. In November 2008 Eke has given a solo performance at the famous “Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ” in Amsterdam with new work, dedicated to her. She has won an interpreter’s prize for her performance of contemporary music. In 2013 Eke has made a world premier recording from work from Swedish composer Kurt Wiklander (*1950)

Eke Simons received her education at the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague, where she studied with Geoffrey Douglas Madge, David Kuyken and Han Louis Meijer. She has taken part in master classes by Pascal Devoyon, Stefan Vladar and Steve Reich. In 2007 she finished her Masters degree in Solo Piano with honors.

photo: from TTK0027 booklet