The Founder
Tina Margareta Nilssen
Tina is the author of “Unleashing the potential of the musicians’ body” (Norwegian translation: “Kunsten å spille på lag med kroppen”), the founder of the Musicians’ Health and Movement Institute (MHMI) and the creator of the movement system, Timani, which develops a deep understanding of the body to support instrumental and singing technique and musical performance.
Since 2007, Tina has taught Timani to thousands of musicians from all over the world. At the MHMI, she established a 3-year, part-time Timani certification program for professional musicians and music teachers which has been running since 2013.
Tina’s background in anatomy and movement comes from her studies as a massage therapist (Axelsons), personal trainer (Norwegian Sports Academy), Kinetic Control Movement Therapist (UK), Kinesthäsie for pianists (UdK) and advanced certified yoga teacher – amongst other.
Her international teaching career has brought her to give workshops at amongst other the Juilliard School in New York, Colburn School in Los Angeles, Royal College of Music in London, YST Conservatory in Singapore, The Royal Danish Music Academy in Copenhagen and for orchestras such as Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the Royal Swedish Orchestra in Stockholm as well as professional chamber music groups, students at universities in many countries, music school teachers and soloists.
As a pianist she began her university studies at NTNU Institute of Music with Jørgen Larsen in 1996. After graduating with a BA from Barratt Due Music Institute (Prof. Jiri Hlinka) in 2001, she took a MA at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo (Prof. Jens Harald Bratlie) with a year’s Erasmus exchange program at the University of Arts in Berlin (Prof. Heide Görtz), finishing this in 2005.
Tina has performed solo and duet recitals in Norway, Denmark, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, England, the USA, Moscow, Italy, New York, and Philadelphia amongst other venues. As a concerto soloist, she has performed piano concertos by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Grieg, and Gershwin and played at numerous music festivals and concert series. She has released four critically-acclaimed CDs on the record company 2L – three with the Dena Piano Duo and one solo recording.
Tina has received a number of grants and awards including the two-year Norwegian artist’s working grant from the Norwegian Arts Council, Jansons Fund, RWE-Dea, and various grants from the Norwegian Fund for Performing Artists.
Contact Tina Margareta Nilssen:
“It is her exquisite and perfectly measured playing that produces such a sense of detached time and space. Her playing is effortless, masterful and lush. It’s easy to get lost in the notes and forget all about the troubles in the world.”
— The Vinyl Anachronist, Marc Phillips, New York, 16. February 2018