Concerto Copenhagen – bringing 300 years of the human experience to life

For over three decades, Concerto Copenhagen has been redefining classical music, blending historical authenticity with artistic innovation. Captivating audiences worldwide, the ensemble brings to life not just the music from the Baroque, Viennese Classical, and Early Romantic periods but also the human experience hidden at its core. This spring, the orchestra can be experienced at a string of venues in Denmark and abroad.

Concerto Copenhagen was founded in 1991 after Danish recorder player Nikolaj de Fine Licht and Swedish oboist Lars Henriksson developed an interest in Baroque music. Nikolaj de Fine Licht, today the managing director of the orchestra, explains; “We travelled to the Netherlands to study as that was where everything was happening at the time. Returning to Denmark, we realised that the kind of musical environment we had experienced in the Netherlands simply didn’t exist here. There was no orchestral scene like the one we had known – so we decided to create it ourselves.”

Weyse Concert. Photo: Niclas Andreasen

Since then, Concerto Copenhagen has graced international stages, released critically acclaimed albums, and collaborated on opera productions, soundtracks, and multimedia projects. Under the musical direction of the renowned, award-winning artistic director Lars Ulrik Mortensen, the orchestra approaches historical compositions with meticulous research and a fresh perspective, breathing new life into centuries-old music. “From the very beginning, our focus has been on the fact that, yes, this is classical music – 300 years old – but it only makes sense to perform if it speaks directly to a modern audience. Our method has always been to search for the essence, the human experience at the core of this historic music and communicate it in a way that feels immediate and relevant,” explains de Fine Licht.

To this end, the ensemble has also been at the forefront of digital content from the very beginning, with de Fine Licht, a past web designer, ensuring that the orchestra became one of the first to stream concerts via its website. However, while recordings can provide an entry to the world of Baroque music, it is in live performance that the music comes alive, and this spring you have plenty of opportunities to experience just that.

Photo: Ditte Valente

Web: www.coco.dk
Facebook: concertocopenhagen
Vimeo: concertocopenhagen
Youtube: : @ConcertoCopenhagen
Instagram: @concertocopenhagen