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COMPETITION

Norrköping: Europe’s new musical capital

Norrköping hopes to raise its profile in the hopes of becoming a European music capital after its recent success hosting the Wilhelm Stenhammar International Music Competition (WSIMC), writes Angela Hur.

Norrköping: Europe's new musical capital

Norrköping hosted the third edition of the biennial WSIMC earlier this month, welcoming 83 opera singers from 29 countries. Municipal leaders hope the event will not only be a springboard for launching the careers of young talents, but also enhance the city’s musical reputation.

“Music is the language of the soul,” said Sonja Stenhammar, artistic director of the WSIMC, which held its final gala concert on June 17th in Norrköping. A former opera singer, Stenhammar believes the event is necessary because “human beings can understand each other through music.”

The international mix of singers, musicians and jury members reveals the scope of the Stenhammar Foundation, which hopes to turn Norrköping into a European music capital, according to Norrköping Mayor Li Teske.

In addition, the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra, which won a MIDEM Classical Award earlier this year, will celebrate its centenary in 2012.

Despite the cosmopolitan background of participants, the competition maintains a distinctly Swedish focus. In the second round of competition, candidates sang one piece by Swedish composer Stenhammar and another work by Daniel Börtz or Hans Gefors, both Swedish modern classical composers.

The final round drew an audience of over 800. The orchestra was led by guest conductor and jury member Nader Abbassi, artistic director and principal conductor of the Cairo Opera Orchestra. The jury chair, Kerstin Meyer, was appointed Sweden’s royal court singer in 1963.

South Korean tenor Lee Jaesig won the top prize of 100,000 kronor, along with the 20,000-kronor audience prize. Fellow Korean Choi Hyekyoung received the second prize of 60,000 kronor, as well as the Mozart Prize of 10,000 kronor.

They were followed by Poland’s Izabela Matula, who received 40,000 kronor, and Romania’s Diana Tugui, who was awarded 20,000 kronor. In addition, South Korean Kim Ji Hyun won the 20,000-kronor contemporary Swedish music prize for the best interpretation of a Börtz or Gefors work.

The nine finalists will perform at galas at the Cairo and Alexandria Opera Houses in Egypts. Other engagements for Lee include the Musical Olympus Festival in St. Petersburg, Russia as well as a solo performance with the Norrköping Symphony Orchestra.

Starting next year, the competition will forgo its biennial schedule, with the Stenhammar Foundation planning to host its first conductor competition.

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SINGING

Danish PM lets her hair down in Friday coronavirus singalong

Mette Frederiksen, the Prime Minister who has driven through one of the fastest and most far-reaching coronavirus lockdowns in Europe, showed her soft side on Friday when she joined in a TV singing event.

Danish PM lets her hair down in Friday coronavirus singalong
Mette Frederiksen showed fairly good singing skills. Photo: Screenshot/Facebook
Frederiksen was filmed in her kitchen and living room, enjoying Danish public broadcaster DR's program 'Fællessang – hver for sig', or 'Community singing, each for themselves'. 
 
Demonstrating a good, powerful singing voice, Frederiksen hit almost all of the notes in her rendition of the '80s classic  “Vågner I natten”, or 'Waking up in the night', by Dodo and the Dodos, which she sang along to while doing the dishes at home. 
 
 
The program on DR, also included 'Kvinde min', or 'my woman, by the Danish '70s rockers Gasolin'. The song, written by the legendary Kim Larsen, was performed by Pernille Rosendahl, lead singer of the Danish rock band The Storm. 
 
“One of the things I think is so nice about it is that Kim makes a love statement for a woman. But he also says in the text that he is not perfect,” Rosendahl told DR.  “And that, I think, is very good to remember in this time. We're just people.” 
 
 
The singalong, which DR started running on Friday nights a week ago, and which it will continue throughout the coronavirus lockdown, features some of the country's most popular singers singing classic songs, either their own or covers. 
 
The singer Michael Falch sang his classic 'I et land uden høje bjerge', 'In a land without high mountains'. 
 
At the request of the haulage firm Svend Munding Transport, Dafne Stilund Nielsen, who won The Voice Junior in 2017, sung 'Lyse nætter', or 'Bright nights' by Alberte Winding. 
 
The programme also featured Faroese singer Teitur Lassen, who performed 'Regnvejrsdag i november' ('Rainy Day in November'). 
 
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