Music in Danish Life
Music is an important part of the lives of most ordinary Danish people. One of the carefully observed traditions is to include music at Danish family celebrations such as wedding parties, birthdays and anniversaries. Indeed, it is not only common to engage one or more musicians for dancing but it is usual for the guests to write songs, normally to well-known traditional tunes, in honour of those to be celebrated.
There is also a tradition of singing in choirs. There are literally hundreds of amateur choirs throughout Denmark, usually specialising in traditional Danish songs or folk music. The supporting organization Dansk Amatørmusik claims it covers 30,000 choir singers and 6,000 members of amateur orchestras.
The Danes are also proud of their two national anthems. The one which is most widely used is Der er et yndigt land (There is a Lovely Land) which is sung loudly and enthusiastically at sporting events. The words are by the Danish poet Adam Oehlenschläger and the music by Hans Ernst Krøyer. The other is Kong Kristian stod ved højen mast (King Christian stood by tow'ring mast), used on official occasions when the royal family is represented. The words are by Johannes Ewald while the music is probably written by Ditlev Ludvig Rogert and can be heard in the final tableau of Elverhøj.
Read more about this topic: Danish Folk Music
Famous quotes containing the words music and/or life:
“Franceska: I was happy in the life I built up for myself. I put a fine high wall of music around me and nothing could touch me. I was safe and secure. And then you had to come along and knock it all down and I hate you for that.
Maxwell: On the contrary, you love me.”
—Muriel Box (b. 1905)
“Like children, the elders are a burden. But unlike children, they offer no hope or promise. They are a weight and an encumbrance and a mirror of our own mortality. It takes a person of great heart to see past this fact and to see the wisdom the elders have to offer, and so serve them out of gratitude for the life they have passed on to us.”
—Kent Nerburn (20th century)