Lars Ulrik Mortensen (born 1955) is a Danish harpsichordist, conductor, and leading specialist in early music. He studied at the Royal Academy of Music in Copenhagen with Karen Englund and Jesper Bøje Christensen, and later with Trevor Pinnock in London. From 1988 to 1990 he was harpsichordist with London Baroque and remained with Collegium Musicum 90 until 1993. Since then, he has built an international career as a soloist and chamber musician, performing across Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Australia.
Mortensen was Professor of Harpsichord and Performance Practice at the Hochschule für Musik in Munich from 1996 to 1999 and continues to teach at early music courses worldwide. He also gained recognition as a conductor, particularly at Copenhagen’s Royal Theatre, before deciding in 2003 to focus exclusively on period-instrument ensembles. Since 1999 he has served as Artistic Director of the Danish Baroque orchestra Concerto Copenhagen, and in 2004 became Musical Director of the European Union Baroque Orchestra (EUBO).
An acclaimed recording artist, Mortensen has recorded for labels including DGG-Archive, EMI, Kontrapunkt, Dacapo, ECM, BIS, and CPO. His recording of Bach’s Goldberg Variations won the prestigious Diapason d’Or, while his extensive Buxtehude recordings earned international praise, multiple Danish Grammy Awards, and the Cannes Classical Award. He has also received the Danish Music Critics’ Award (1984), the Léonie Sonning Music Prize (2007), and was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in 2008.
