Final seminar of the “ComSing" project: A Singing Society? Communal Singing in Denmark and the Limits of Social Inclusion

Final seminar of the “ComSing" project: A Singing Society? Communal Singing in Denmark and the Limits of Social Inclusion

25 September 2026

Denmark is often described as a singing society. We sing at schools, workplaces, ceremonies, public events, and private celebrations, sometimes with people we may never meet again. Communal singing is widely associated with belonging, togetherness, and shared cultural memory.But how did singing become such an important part of Danish cultural life? How does it continue to shape ideas of community and Danish identity today? And who feels included, excluded, or ambivalent when people sing together?

Over the past three years, the ComSing project has explored these questions through historical, ethnographic, survey-based, and computational research. The project has examined communal singing both as a long-standing cultural tradition and as a living, changing social practice.This final seminar brings together Danish and international researchers for a programme of talks, discussion, and reflection on communal singing, social inclusion, participation, and musical culture in Denmark and beyond.

The event is free and open to all, and we warmly welcome both academic and non-academic audiences with an interest in singing, music, culture, and community. The seminar will be held in English and will feature presentations, conversation, light refreshments, champagne, and perhaps even a song or two. Please register no later than 14 September due to refreshments: https://event.au.dk/events/closing-seminar-of-the-comsing-research-project

Programme:

Place: Aulaen (Building 1412, Nordre Ringgade 4, 8000 Aarhus C)

10:00–10:15  

Welcome and project presentation - Lea Wierød Borčak

10:15–11:00  

Quantifying the Unmarked: Tracing the Semantic Transformation of Communal Singing in Danish Newspapers 1800–2000 - Katrine Laigaard Baunvig

11:00–11:15  

Coffee break

11:15–12:00  

Making a Scene of the Nation - Thomas Husted Kirkegaard

12:00–12:30  

Lunch break

12:30–13:15  

The Limits of Inclusion in Communal Singing: Why Not Everyone Loves Singing - Lea Wierød Borčak

13:15–14:00  

Guest presentation by Martin Hornstrup: Sing-versity: Experiences from Multicultural Communal Singing in Denmark

14:00–14:15  

Break

14:15–15:15  

Keynote lecture by Georgina Born

15:15–16:15  

Closing reflections and plenary discussion - Rasmus Skov Borring

16:15–17:00  

Champagne & hors d’oeuvre