Ars Nova Copenhagen
Nordby Church, Fanø. Monday 21st July 2025 at 7.30 pm
All-inclusive Festival Ticket KR. 700,-
Ars Nova Copenhagen
til Kærligheden – for love
Samuel Barber (1910-81):
The Coolin
David Lang (1957-):
For Love is Strong
Libby Larsen (1950-): from A Lover’s Journey
– In the Still Garden
– Will you, Nill you
G.P. da Palestrina (1525-94): Canticum canticorum:
– Ecce tu pulcher es
– Sicut lilium inter spinas
– Surge propera amica mea
– Descendi in hortum meum
Caroline Shaw (1982-):
Dolce Cantavi
Madalena Casulana (1544-90):
Morir non può ‘l mio core
Louis Andriessen (1939-2021):
Un beau baiser
Jean-Yves Daniel Lesur (1908-2002):
Cantique des Cantiques
Ars Nova Copenhagen
Kate Macoboy, Kirse Kampp, Ann-Christin Wesser Ingels, Hanne Marie le Fevre, Laura Lamph, Elenor Wiman, Luis Toscano,
Kevin Skelton, Jakob Skjoldborg, Asger Petersen, Rasmus Thomsen, Mikkel Tuxen
Conductor: Sofi Jeannin
Love has countless expressions. Love for a partner. For a child. For home. For God. This concert celebrates love in all its forms through diverse and expressive vocal music, spanning from intimate closeness to profound universal longing.
Several of the works draw inspiration from the Song of Songs—a collection of erotic love poems written as a dialogue between Solomon and Shulamit. Although the poems describe the love between a man and a woman, they have also been interpreted over time as a metaphor for one’s relationship with God. An excerpt from the iconic Canticum Canticorum by Palestrina, who can celebrate his 500th anniversary in 2025, is naturally a central part ofthe program. Jean-Yves Daniel-Lesur’s magnificent Cantique de Cantique from 1952 blends traditional Gregorian melodies with modern harmonic structures, creating a fascinating dialogue between the old and the new. David Lang’s minimalist For Love is Strong, written for Ars Nova and part of the ensemble’s Grammy-winning CD, explores the strength of love through its pure and intense musical form.
But the essence of love reaches further. Samuel Barber’s lush and evocative The Coolin celebrates the joys of love under open skies, while Libby Larsen’s humorous A Lover’s Journey, with texts by James Joyce and Shakespeare, portrays the many facets of love with both warmth and irony. Louis Andriessen’s poetic Un beau baiser (A Beautiful Kiss) offers a refined musical interpretation of one of love’s most simple and direct expressions.
The voice of the Renaissance resounds beautifully through Maddalena Casulana’s Morir non può ‘l mio core (My Heart Cannot Die), a piece by one of history’s earliest female composers. The music expresses a deep longing for the beloved, for whom the narrator would “die” —a subtle nod to the Renaissance’s double meaning of “death” as a metaphor for romantic climax. Caroline Shaw’s Dolce Cantavi from 2016 exemplifies how a moderncomposer can draw inspiration from the vocal richness of the Renaissance while making the style her own.
This program brings together music written to love across the centuries. A beautiful journey through the many facets of love, to be enjoyed alone or shared with someone you hold dear.
Ars Nova Copenhagen has over the years established itself as one of the world’s leading vocal ensembles with a sound and quality that few others can match. The ensemble’s artistic director is the renowned Sofi Jeannin, who maintains the group’s world-class standard. Ars Nova gives over 50 concerts annually both in Denmark and abroad, having toured in more than 40 countries. Their numerous album releases, including a Grammy-winning one, have earned worldwide recognition. Previous artistic directors include prominent names such as Bo Holten, Tamas Vetö, and Paul Hillier, who have all contributed to shaping the ensemble’s unique sound.
ARS NOVA Copenhagen is a Danish-based, international vocal ensemble of 12 members that specializes in renaissance polyphonic choral music and new vocal music, which is performed with precision and nerve, and with a sound that attracts attention all over the world.
The ensemble has long since established itself as one of the world’s finest vocal ensembles and has toured in more than 40 countries over the years. With concerts in Copenhagen and the rest of Denmark and several annual tours worldwide, the group is today more in demand than ever. In 2024 there will be tours to The Faroe Islands, Italy, Germany and the United States.
Over the years, Ars Nova has had close collaborations with a large number of both international and Danish composers, including Pelle Gudmundsens-Holmgreen, Per Nørgård and Arvo Pärt. Most recently, the ensemble premiered works by Bent Sørensen, Signe Lykke, Caroline Shaw and Galina Grigorjeva.
Ars Nova has recorded a number of award-winning albums; including a Grammy for The Little Match Girl Passion with music by David Lang (with Theater of Voices at Harmonia Mundi). The ensemble’s latest release is “…and…” (Naxos) with works by Arvo Pärt, Julia Wolfe and Caroline Shaw as well as Italian medieval songs from Laudario di Cortona, which was nominated as release of the year at the P2 Prize 2022, and Crossing Borders (Dacapo) with music by Carl Nielsen, Niels W. Gade, Vagn Holmboe, Wilhelm Stenhammer and Line Tjørnhøj. Both releases have received top reviews in the press.
Other releases include Creator Spiritus with music by Arvo Pärt and The Christmas Story (Harmonia Mundi), Gallos Y Huesos | Notker with music by the Argentinian composer Pablo Ortiz (Orchid Classics) and The Golden Age of Danish Partsongs (Dacapo) with music by a string of pearls by the best Danish vocal composers from the past 200 years. Heinrich Schütz has a very special place at Ars Nova, and in the years 2008-2011 the group recorded the composer’s complete dramatic works for Easter and Christmas. Recordings that led to an invitation to be artist in residence at the German Heinrich Schütz Musikfest.
Ars Nova was founded in 1979 and was led until 1995 by the Danish conductor and composer Bo Holten, whose pioneering ideas about a repertoire encompassing both early and new music helped to establish the ensemble’s position both in Denmark and internationally.
Tamás Vetö, who succeeded Holten in 1995, conducted i.a. a long series of highly praised concert performances and recordings of new Danish music.
From the beginning of this century until 2023, the ensemble was led by Paul Hillier, who with his artistic vision and uncompromisingness raised Ars Nova Copenhagen to the high level where the group is today. Paul Hillier was appointed honorary conductor of Ars Nova Copenhagen in 2023.
In 2024 Sofi Jeannin took over as the ensemble’s new chief conductor. Swedish/French Jeannin is in demand as a conductor all over the world: in addition to holding the positions of chief conductor of the BBC Singers and Maitrise de Radio France, she regularly appears as guest conductor of a large number of leading European choirs and vocal ensembles. Ars Nova has thus once again succeeded in attracting an international conductor from the top shelf.
Ars Nova is part of Tenso – The European network for professional chamber choirs