Lene Grenager
Composer | Norwegian | b. 1969
About Lene Grenager
Lene Grenager (b. 1969) is a cellist and composer. She has written orchestral works, chamber music and solo works. As a performing musician, she mainly works with improvisation and with what she calls collective composition. Over three decades, her instrumental investigations have formed a cornerstone in her ensembles SPUNK and LEMUR, further developed and extended in her solo practice. Her trademark is a unique control of the cello’s timbral possibilities.
Her composition activity is broad and includes work with various forms of notation (including traditional notation, graphic notation and embroidered scores), incorporation of video, electronics and sound files. She has worked with site-specific compositions, installations and in collaboration with dancers and actors. As a cellist, she has released two solo albums and has also contributed to around 30 releases as a composer, musician and producer. She has written the book Hagearbeid – om frø og kultivering i Lene Grenagers musikk (‘Gardening – about seeds and cultivation in Lene Grenager’s music’) and several articles. In 2025 she was appointed Associate Professor in composition at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo.
She was awarded the Arne Nordheim Composer Prize in 2018.
