We’ve had a few emails from people who are a bit confused about Søren’s participation in Danish Vibes. What is this initiative, and how did he come to be involved?
Danish Vibes is a collaboration between state-funded arts organisations like JazzDanmark and the Danish Arts Council with music industry experts in Germany. These include the venerable German broadcaster NDR, as well as companies such as ENJA Records and concert promoter Karsten Jahnke Konzert Direktion. The aim of the initiative is to showcase Danish artists in Germany. Danish Vibes does this by, among other things, staging an annual concert in a major German city.
Five Danish acts are selected by a jury of German industry professionals each year in the categories of jazz, world music and folk. Søren Bebe Trio is one of the two jazz groups that have been picked for 2015 (the other is Offpiste Gurus). So the Trio will perform at the showcase concert, which will take place in Hamburg on 26 November. The venue hasn’t been announced yet, but we’ll let you know when it is.
What does Søren make of it all? “I’m thrilled, of course. It’s about more than just giving the Trio very valuable additional exposure in Germany from the Hamburg concert. Being part of Danish Vibes also involves a programme of coaching, advice and goal-setting for all the acts to help boost their appeal to German audiences.”
“That’s not as odd as it might sound” explains Søren. “Every country has its own cultural preferences and peculiarities, as I know myself from performing in places as different as Hong Kong is to Paris, or Tokyo is to Reykjavik.”
“In Germany, you need to pay particular attention to the visual element of a concert – the set-up on stage, for example. There’s also a ‘good’ and a ‘not-so-good’ way to talk to your audience. It seems to me that getting these things right is a mark of respect for the people who’ve paid to see and hear you.
“So I’m absolutely delighted to be receiving this advice through the Danish Vibes programme. And I’m really looking forward to our Hamburg gig.”
Posted 21 March 2015