 Born into a family of teachers in Pretoria, Niel attended high school in Pietersburg (now Polokwane) in South Africa.After matriculating in 1980 he studied at the University of Pretoria, where he attained the BA Ed(Mus), BMus(Hons) "cum laude" and an MMus in Composition.In 1997 he completed his Doctorate in Musicology at the University of South Africa with a doctoral dissertation on the life and works of the British composer Gerald Finzi.