Mikk Üleoja

b. January 2, 1970, Tallinn

Choir conductor and singer Mikk Üleoja comes from a family of musicians – his parents Ene and Ants Üleoja are well known choir conductors, as well as his sister Elo Forsel.

In 1988, Mikk Üleoja graduated from the Tallinn Music High School, where he had studied choir conducting under guidance of her sister Elo Forsel and trumpet with Aavo Ots. In 1997, he graduated from the Estonian Academy of Music in Ants Üleoja’s choir conducting class, and gained a master’s degree in 2004 with Prof. Toomas Siitan. In 1990–1993, Üleoja was a student at singing deparment of the Snellman College, in Lahti, Finland, studying Rudolf Steiner’s teaching based Werbeck`s method under the guidance of Christiaan Boeel.

In 1989–1992, Mikk Üleoja was a singer at World Youth Choir, in 1994–1996 at the Estonian National Male Choir, and from 1996 to 2000 at the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir. Since 1998, he has been a member of the Gregorian chant ensemble Vox Clamantis.
As a singer, he has performed almost all over the world in concerts with Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and Vox Clamantis – in Europe, North America, Asia, Australia, Japan ect. He has also sung in many CD recordings of Vox Clamantis and Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir.

Mikk Üleoja has been the principal conductor of Pärnu chamber choir Mattone (1994–1996) and St. Michael's Boys' Choir (2003–2005). Since 2003, Üleoja is a conductor of concert choir of Tallinn St. Charles Congregation. He has taught conducting in Viljandi Culture Academy (2004–2005) and been a long-time choir master of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir (1998–2011). He has conducted the choir also at the concerts often focusing to Estonian choral music in their programmes. He has conducted recordings of several albums with Estonian music as „Te Deum“ (2002), „Ma tulen taevast ülevelt“ (2005), „Luule, see ei tule tuulest“ (2007) and „Requiem“ (2007).

Since 2011, Mikk Üleoja is an artistic director and principal conductor of the Estonian National Male Choir.

Mikk Üleoja has been awarded the Golden Medal of Armenian Ministry of Culture for supporting and popularization Armenian culture (2016) and the Annual Prize of the Estonian Cultural Endowment for Music (2007).

© EMIC 2013

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