The Danish National Girls Choir (DNGC) dates back to 1938 when it was founded by one of the country’s leading music teachers, Kirsten Jacobsen. Performing in Danish small town churches or in great concert halls all over the world the critics agree: “The girls sing beautiful and pure and with a contagious joy for music reaching all the way down to the back row in the hall”. And the critics’ praise has not decreased after Michael Bojesen in 2001 took over as the principal conductor for the choir. On the contrary! It has been the beginning of new and exciting era for the DNGC. Concerts, uniting traditional Nordic music and modern contemporary music have become very popular. Not just among the critics, but also among the large faithful audience in Denmark.

Every day, on the Danish Broadcasting Corporation’s (DR) many radio channels, the DNGC can be heard singing songs related to the seasons of the year. These broadcasts counts a audience of more than 800.000 listeners every day. This makes the DNGC the most well known and one of the most beloved ensembles in Denmark performing more than 60 concerts every year - in Denmark and abroad. The Danish National Girls Choir is a permanent ensemble under the auspices of the Danish Radio / Broadcasting Corporation (DR). The activities of the choir are mainly funded by DR licence fees - however, the touring activities of the choir is based on contributions from private and public foundations, as well as revenues from concerts outside DR. The Danish National Girls Choir is the flagship of DR’s highly estimated choir-school mainly for girls. The choir-school consists of 4 choirs in total - from the ages 6-22 years. The Danish National Girls Choir consists of girls in the ages from 16-22 years. The choirs are not just a group of ensembles but form a very unique educational course. But the choristers singing in the choirs are “ordinary” children and young people that parallel to their intense choir-activities are students in regular elementary and high schools in Denmark.

The choir appears on radio and TV, in churches, in concert halls and other events all over the Denmark as well as international activities form an important part of the DNGC’s work. Regularly the choir travels abroad participating in competitions and workshops as well as doing concerts. In 2005 the Choir participated in a major Danish cultural festival in Murmansk, Russia. The festival marked Denmark’s chairmanship of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2005. In 2004 the choir toured China and had the honour of having their patroness, HRH Princess Alexandra, with them. In 2003 the choir visited South Africa cooperating with the excellent “Tygerberg Children’s Choir” who later came to Denmark to participate in the “Danish National Girls Choir’s Christmas concerts” at the Danish Radio Concert Hall. In 2003 the choir also won the second prize in the international choir competition “Let the Peoples Sing” in London. And in the summer of 2002 the choir participated in the prestigious competition “International Choral Kathaumixw” in Canada, where they had great success and achieved brilliant results. Competing with more than 1100 singers from 30 different choirs representing 10 different countries, a unison jury nominated the Danish National Girls Choir: “Choir of the World at Kathaumixw 2002”.

Over the last years the DNGC has gained remarkable new strength and artistic blood and energy. As part of the Choir’s new profile, under the leadership of Michael Bojesen, collaborations with living composers has been intensified and a large number of new works have been commissioned. At the same time it is the trademark of the Choir to mix the genres in music, among other ways in a new collaboration with the Danish jazz bassist, Chris Minh Doky, with whom the choir has recorded the CD “Home sweet home”. Furthermore, the choir can be heard on a large number of CD releases and recordings.

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