Program
Danish String Quartet
The Danish String Quartet consists of Rune Tonsgaard Sørensen (violin), Frederik Øland (violin), Asbjørn Nørgaard (viola), and Fredrik Sjölin (cello). Until 2008, Carl-Oscar Østerlind was the ensemble’s cellist.
Gold concerts
May 18: Svendborg, Borgerforeningen in collaboration with Svendborg Chamber Music Society. Tickets
May 19: Aarhus, Helsingør Theatre in collaboration with Aarhus Music Society. Get tickets here.
May 20: Roskilde, Hotel Prindsen. Tickets
May 21: Copenhagen, Odd Fellow Palace in collaboration with Series of Four. Get tickets here
Under the heading Gold concerts, the traditional chamber concert is celebrated from May 18-21, 2025. These four intimate concerts bring the audience close to the quartet and the music in some of Denmark’s most beautiful old chamber music halls: The Gold Hall in Svendborg, Helsingør Theatre in Aarhus, Prindsen in Roskilde, and the Odd Fellow Palace in Copenhagen. The concerts are organized in collaboration with local music societies, and the concert in Copenhagen is part of the quartet’s Series of Four. In connection with the Gold concerts, masterclasses are planned at the conservatories in Odense, Aarhus, and Copenhagen.
Musical theater performance with Lars Mikkelsen at Bellevue Theatre
Performance: May 26
Letters and string quartets by Shostakovich form the basis for the musical theater performance I Press Your Hands Warmly. The text was developed by violinist Asbjørn Nørgaard with the Danish String Quartet handling the musical arrangement. Words and phrases from Shostakovich’s letters are crafted into a monologue, performed by Lars Mikkelsen in the role of Shostakovich. The monologue is accompanied by a sound collage featuring fragments and sections from the composer’s fifteen string quartets, creating a cohesive dramaturgical flow. This gripping performance offers an intimate portrayal of Shostakovich, unlike anything seen before. The music drama will premiere in collaboration with Bellevue Theatre on May 26, 2025, and will tour internationally in 2026-2027.
Get tickets here
Photo: Caroline Bittencourt
Tunes & Trads – a folk music celebration
May 31 in Copenhagen,Pladeværkstedet, Refshaleøen
3 concerts, each one hour long
The Danish String Quartet has, for many years, arranged and programmed Nordic folk music alongside the great classical masterpieces. The quartet’s many critically acclaimed recordings of folk music, along with corresponding sheet music publications, have spread Nordic melodies around the world. On Saturday, May 31, 2025, the Danish String Quartet, together with two guest bands, will fill Pladeværkstedet (formerly part of B&W’s old shipyard on Refshaleøen) with folk music, dancing, and communal dining.
Prize Concert with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and Danish National Girls’ Choir
June 5 at the Concert Hall of the Royal Danish Academy
1st half: A curated journey through string quartet and music history
2nd half: John Adams’ Absolute Jest
The Danish String Quartet has curated a very special prize concert. The first half of the concert offers a curated musical journey from the Baroque to the most contemporary music. This progression will both illustrate the history of music and tell the Danish String Quartet’s own story. The quartet is a classical string quartet with Haydn and Beethoven at their fingertips, but they are also shaped by Danish culture and intellectual history – by Carl Nielsen, community singing, and folk high schools. The members of the quartet are also modern, versatile musicians who can effortlessly switch between different musical genres, and this ability will also be demonstrated in the concert. In the second half of the concert, the Danish String Quartet will take on the role of soloists with the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and perform John Adams’ Absolute Jest for quartet and orchestra: A modern masterpiece for string quartet and symphony orchestra, directly based on Beethoven’s legendary late string quartets from the 1820s.
Tickets DR Koncerthuset here
More information
Kristina Sindberg
kristina@sindbergkommunikation.dk
Mobile 24860184