Bo Andersen studied at the institutes of Musicology and Scandinavian philology at the University of Copenhagen. Between 1988 and -95 he studied composition with Ib Nørholm, theory of music with Yngve Jan Trede and scoring with Erik Norby at the Royal Academy of Music in Copenhagen. Here he also graduated as an organist in 1990 after private studies.
His oeuvre includes chamber music for several ensembles such as string quartets, a number of works for accordion (solo and with other instruments) and one orchestral piece. Over recent years, Henze and Takemitsu have become ley sources of inspiration for Andersen, as well as much earlier music such as the Elizabethan masters, for example, Locke and Jenkins. Other pivotal influences include classical composers such as Barber, Ravel, Debussy, Sibelius and Bruckner as well as film composers like Corigliano, Williams and Goldsmith.