About

Damkapellet is a music collective formed in 2016 to bring diversity to the Danish music scene by highlighting and performing music by artists who define themselves as women, non-binary or transgender. The collective debuted on 8 March the same year at Koncertkirken, Copenhagen, celebrating International Women's Day.

As an ensemble, Damkapellet embraces large parts of art music, from newly composed music and improvisation to opera, baroque, children's performances, and performance art. They also compose works collectively as a group.

Since its foundation, the members of Damkapellet have been lecturing about female composers and gender structures, and performing regularly at festivals and in projects like Klang Festival, SPOT Festival, SPOR Festival, Ung Nordisk Musik Festival, Gong Tomorrow, Talk Town Festival, Københavns Musikteater, Kvindemusikfestivalen, children's concerts in Denmark and Russia as well as organising their own festivals and events.

Damkapellet have collaborated with composers and ensembles such as Lo Kristenson, Greta Eacott, Guusje Ingen Housz, Konstmusiksystrar, Alina Petrova, Ying-Hsueh Chen, Rosali Grankull, Kvinnoorkestern, Den Andra Operan, Julija Morgan, Kirstine Lindemann, Pauline Hogstrand and Randi Pontoppidan. In 2020, Damkapellet entered a one-year residency at Koncertkirken, where the collective held a series of concerts, arranged festivals and the conversation-based event, Another Composer Coffee. They are currently a part of a two year residency program at Musikhuset VÆKST.

Damkapellet's members represent many different interests, which have naturally shaped the collective to include various projects, performances and ensembles over time. Some members are interested in old music, some in new, and some make their own. Improvisation has also become a natural part of the process since, in improvisation, nothing but your own limits stop you from creating.

Today, Damkapellet consists of 14 members based Copenhagen and Malmö.

Members

Dogma

Damkapellet has collectivness as the foundation of every aspect of their work - both artistically and organizationally.

Damkapellet values openness and curiosity. Genre and formation are unimportant: what is vital is a mutual urge to explore and create together.

Damkapellet stands in opposition to the patriarchal classical music tradition and to its hierarchal forms of creation.

Damkapellet interprets, collaborates with external composers, or create original works themselves.

Damkapellet listens! to each other and to their surroundings. This way they create the intimacy around the musical experience itself, where the audience is involved with naturalness and trust.

Download Damkapellet Manifesto (2017)