Jannis Noya Makrigiannis, the frontman and mastermind of the Danish orchestral pop band Choir Of Young Believers, has died. Ghostly, the record label that helped to bring Makrigiannis’ music to the world, announced today that he died late last year following a brief illness. He was 39.

Makrigiannis came up in the Copenhagen music scene, playing in bands including Lake Placid. In 2006 he moved to the Greek island of Samos to develop the project that became Choir Of Young Believers. He returned to Copenhagen and launched the band with 2008 debut album This Is For The White In Your Eyes. First released through Tigerspring and given broader distribution the following year through Ghostly, the album put Choir Of Young Believers in sonic conversation with peers like Grizzly Bear and Efterklang. Three more albums followed, most recently 2022’s Holy Smoke.

In their tribute, Ghostly wrote, “Jannis was a gentle, kind soul, always appreciative of our team helping him to share his art with the world. He always put art first in his process, and as a result, Jannis was often far ahead of the cultural curve. His music only seems to get better with time.”