Don't mistake my kindness for weakness

25-årige Charlotte Rowan er ung, ambitiøs og syngende musikalsk. Hun er kun lige færdiguddannet, men svinger ydmygt og stolt dirigentstokken hos Herning Kirkes Drengekor.

Af Leila Kempel

Do-re-mi… Den grundlæggende toneskala, som de fleste kender fra musicalen Sound of Music. Julie Andrews har gjort den kendt, da hun som den spinkle næsten usynlige barnepige sikkert og energisk lufter sin musikalitet foran de knejsende alpetinder og en moderløs søskendeflok.

På samme måde er 25-årige og engelskfødte Charlotte Rowan dukket op – nærmest sådan lidt ud af det blå. Uimponeret og ydmygt er hun sprunget ind på scenen foran 65 velsyngende lokale musiktinder i Herning Kirkes Drengekor.

De store sko

Charlotte Rowan er den nyansatte dirigent for Herning Kirkes drengekor. Hun er den, som er udpeget til at fylde legenden Mads Billes sko ud. - Og de er store, erkender Charlotte Rowan, lidt star struck over, at hun er den, der skal gøre forsøget.

- Jeg er en størrelse »six« - og ja det svarer til en...åh størrelse 39 i Danmark, siger Charlotte Rowan i et stort smil og afslører, at det er en af de ting, hun endnu ikke helt har vænnet sig til. Altså det med skostørrelserne.

Det stod ikke ligefrem skrevet i nodelinjerne, at den unge kvinde fra engelske Liverpool skulle gå efter en musikalsk karriere.

- England har mange stolte kor-traditioner, og det var også her, at dørene pludselig åbnede sig. Jeg fik min stemme. Jeg startede som den lille forsigtige og generte pige i den lokale kirke. Det var en åbenbaring, da musikkens porte åbnede sig. Det var her, jeg pludselig kunne mærke og føle, at jeg havde en stemme. Musikken fik mig til at vokse og gav mig en selvtillid, som jeg ikke vidste, jeg havde, siger Charlotte Rowan.

Her tales i toner

Hun tager imod på lærerværelset i Sangens hus på Nørregade i Herning, hvor der på trods af sommerferien er masser af syngende børn i baggrunden. Skolen har nemlig budt ind med et tilbud om gratis korsang og undervisning, og det giver Charlotte Rowan mulighed for at fornemme atmosfæren for, hvad hun selv kalder et fantastisk sted.

Trappen mellem etagerne fortæller om et helt tydeligt sprog: Her tales i toner.

Hvert trin har sin lyd, og der skal ikke meget fantasi til at forestille sig, hvordan en flok børn hurtigt kan få en sang ud af at hoppe op og ned på trinene centralt placeret på skolen.

Den Jyske Sangskole og den danske måde at leve på adskiller sig ganske markant fra, hvad Charlotte Rowan er vokset op i - et konservativt britisk samfund fyldt med traditioner nedarvet gennem generationer.

- Jeg var utrolig privilegeret og fik en unik chance for at studere musik på Cambridge University, fortæller dirigenten, der tog sin bacheloreksamen på det legendariske universitet.

Anbefalet Danmark

Charlotte Rowan var efter sin eksamen klar til at tage på en musikalsk rejse og kiggede efter et sted at fuldende sin uddannelse med et toårigt kandidatstudie.

- Under mine studier i England mødte jeg en dansk fyr, der talte så godt og varmt for Aarhus, at jeg besluttede at se nærmere på det. Jeg tog afsted og blev begejstret for byen, Danmark og hele den måde, man lever på. Beslutningen var derfor ikke svær, da jeg søgte om at afslutte mine studier på Aarhus Universitet, fortæller Charlotte Rowan.

Det efterhånden forhadte c-ord er skyld i meget. Og pandemien har også fået indflydelse på Charlotte Rowans situation. Hun har således først fornyelig fået muligheden for at afslutte sin masteruddannelse i klassisk korledelse. Til gengæld med bravour og fuld musik – i form af et 12-tal, såmænd. De sidste par år har Charlotte Rowan således boet i Aarhus. På trods af hendes egen ydmyghed over at få chancen i Danmark, gik der ikke lang tid, før nyheden om den dygtige englænder gav genlyd i musikalske kredse.

Betydningsfuldt opkald

En dag ringede telefonen: ”Det er Mads Bille - Har du ikke lyst til at komme til Herning og møde Herning Kirkes Drengekor?”. Charlotte Rowan kigger ned i gulvet og erkender, at hun dengang ikke helt havde styr på, hvem det var, der var i den anden ende af telefonforbindelsen.

Herning Kirkes Drengekor behøvede til gengæld ikke en nærmere præsentation. Dem huskede hun fra en koncert i hjemlandet.

Derfor tabte hun et øjeblik pusten.

- Men jo, det ville jeg da gerne. Så fik jeg chancen for at se lidt mere af det dejlige Danmark. Mads Bille og jeg blev efter en række samtaler og kaffemøder enige om, at jeg skulle kobles på koret som assistent. Og hvilken mulighed! Mødet med drengene åbnede en ny verden, hvor jeg blev bekræftet i, hvordan mit drømmejob skulle se ud. Men jeg fik også for alvor åbnet op for at lære dansk. Drengene er fyldt med energi. Man ved aldrig, hvad der venter, når man møder op. De inspirerer mig. Helt vildt. Jeg fik en dag et stykke papir med en række gængse sætninger og samtidig en oversættelse med, hvordan ordene skulle siges. På dansk…, siger Charlotte Rowan og lægger den ene hånd op på brystet for at vise, hvilken hjertelighed hun har mødt i koret.

Drømmejobbet i Herning

Derfor handler det i hendes verden ikke om, hvilken kapacitet, der er blevet lokket til Herning. Men om, at hun har scoret sit absolutte drømmejob. - Det er lidt en ambivalent situation, at koret skal sige farvel til en legende, men det er så perfekt for mig at få et drømmejob, siger Charlotte Rowan.

Hun er ikke i tvivl om, at hun bliver udfordret.

- Det danske sangfællesskab, og den danske sangskat skal jeg til at lære, men jeg kommer med en pose fuld af engelske kortraditioner, som jeg er overbevist om, kan være med til at bibeholde Herning Kirkes Drengekor i den internationale klasse, hvor det er i dag.

- Koret er professionelt og i verdensklasse. Det gør mig nervøs. Men på den gode måde. Mads Bille har lært mig en masse. Han har udfordret mig og vist, at han tror på mig.

Da jeg havde problemer med at komme fra Aarhus til Herning, opfordrede han mig til at leje en bil og bare springe ud i at køre på de danske veje. I højre side vel og mærke, siger dirigenten om det voldsomme spring, hun har taget fra at være en ukendt studerende fra England til at stå i spidsen for et meget kendt kor i Danmark.

Hun er på mange måder en hel anden end Mads Bille.

Hun er englænder og hun er kvinde. Men tag ikke fejl. Hun har også ambitioner. Både på egne, men også på de enkelte kormedlemmers vegne.

En gave at se dem vokse

- Jeg har mine principper. Jeg er vild med danskernes måde at være sammen på. Jeg kan være både sjov og have det sjovt med musik. Men jeg stiller også krav. »Don’t mistake my kindness for weakness«. Jeg har klare regler. De er vigtige for, at vi kan udvikle os, og for at hver enkelt af drengene kan komme videre. Jeg glæder mig til at se dem vokse og gro med deres musik. De behøver ikke blive professionelle musikere eller sangere, for det er en gave bare at se dem vokse, siger Charlotte Rowan, lidt overrasket over, at danske mødre ofte er dem, der har det sidste ord, når børnene skal tage svære beslutninger.

- Så behøver jeg nok faktisk ikke bekymre mig om, hvorvidt drengene vil lytte til, hvad jeg har at sige, siger Charlotte Rowan med smil på læberne.

25-year-old Charlotte Rowan is young, ambitious and musical to her very bones. She has only just finished her master’s degree, but now humbly and proudly swings her conductor’s baton to direct the boys’ choir at Herning church; Herning Kirkes Drengekor.

By Leila Kempel

Do-re-mi… This is the all too familiar start of a basic musical scale, and something most people know from The Sound of Music. Julie Andrews made it famous when, as the fresh-faced nanny, she suddenly appeared in the lives of the von Trapp family and then enthusiastically aired her musicality amid the towering Alps, and in doing so captured the hearts of the seven von Trapp children.

Charlotte Rowan appeared in much the same way into her new role as choir director of Herning Boys’ Choir. Undaunted and graciously humble, she has jumped onto the stage in front of her own von Trapp family, of sorts; the 65 talented children in the boys’ choir at Herning church.

Big shoes to fill

Charlotte Rowan is the newly-employed music conductor for the boys’ choir at Herning church. She has been chosen to fill the shoes of the legendary Mads Bille.

- And they are big shoes to fill, Rowan acknowledges, a little starstruck that she has been chosen to attempt this feat.

- I am a size six, and yes that is ... um, a size 39 in Denmark, Charlotte Rowan says with a big smile, revealing that the different shoe sizes here in Denmark is one of the many things she has not gotten used to yet.

It was never exactly a fait accompli that this young woman from Liverpool would pursue a musical career.

- England has many proud choir traditions, and indeed that was where the doors suddenly opened for me. I found my voice. I started out as that careful, shy girl in the local church, but it was an epiphany when the musical gates opened. I realised this is where I could suddenly feel that I had a voice. The music helped me grow and gave me a confidence that I didn’t know I had, Rowan says.

Here they speak in tones

She greets us in the teachers’ lounge at Sangens hus (house of singing) in Nørregade in Herning, where, despite the summer holidays, there are plenty of children singing in the background. The school has enticed them in with the offer of free choir singing and teaching, and that gives Charlotte Rowan the chance to get a sense of the atmosphere of this `amazing place´.

Even the noise from the stairs here tells the story of a very clear lingua franca in this place of music: here they speak in tones.

Every step has its own unique sound, and it doesn’t take much to imagine how a bunch of children might very quickly conjure a song from the very depths of the hallowed building, as they jump up and down the steps that are centrally-placed in the school.

Den Jyske Sangskole and the Danish way of living is quite different from how Charlotte Rowan grew up – in a conservative British society full of traditions that have been passed down through generations.

- I was incredibly privileged and had a unique chance to study music at Cambridge University, says the conductor, who studied for her bachelor’s degree at the legendary university.

Denmark came highly recommended

After graduating, Charlotte Rowan was ready to go on a musical journey and so she looked for a place to further her education by completing a two-year master’s degree.

- During my studies in England, I met a Danish guy who spoke so highly and warmly about Aarhus that I decided to look into it further. I went along and I just loved the city and the entire way of living. So, my decision to finish my studies at Aarhus University was not a difficult one, Charlotte Rowan says.

That increasingly well-known `corona-word´ has impacted all of our lives in some way; and Charlotte Rowan is no different. She was only recently able to finish her master’s degree in classical choral conducting. However, she did it with honours and was rewarded with the highest mark. So, Charlotte has been living in Aarhus for the last couple of years. Despite her own humble gratitude to have been given that chance in Denmark, it didn’t take long for the talented Englishwoman’s name to resonate in musical circles.

Klassisk musik fra øverste hylde Classical, top-shelf music

Ensemble MidtVest, som blev etableret i 2002 og holder til på HEART – Herning Museum of Contemporary Art, spiller ca. 100 koncerter om året i ind- og udland. Ensemblet har til målsætning at gøre de sidste 500 års musik tilgængelig for det 21. århundredes publikum, så udover et repertoire med klassiske kammermusik, arbejder ensemblet med fri improvisation såvel som barok og tidlige klassiske værker. Ensemblet, som består af en strygekvartet, en blæserkvintet og en pianist har blandt mange steder i verden optrådt i Carnegie Hall i New York og Kings’ Place og Wigmore Hall i London. Heldigvis kan du også opleve ensemblet, når du er på besøg i det midtjyske. Læs mere og tjek koncertkalenderen på emv.dk.

Ensemble MidtVest, which was established in 2002 and can be found at HEART – Herning Museum of Contemporary Art plays around 100 concerts a year in Denmark and abroad. The ensemble’s goal is to make the last 500 years of music accessible to the 21st century audience. So, apart from a repertoire of classical chamber music, the ensemble also works on free improvisation, as well as baroque and early classical works. The ensemble, which consists of a string quartet, a wind quintet and a pianist, has performed at Carnegie Hall in New York and Kings’ Place and Wigmore Hall in London, among others. Lucky for you, you can experience the ensemble when visiting the central part of Jutland. Read more and check out the concert calendar at emv.dk/?lang=en.

A meaningful call

One day the phone rang; -This is Mads Bille. Would you like to come to Herning and meet the boys’ choir at Herning church? Charlotte Rowan looks down, shamefaced, and admits that at the time she did not know exactly who was at the other end of the phone.

The choir, Herning Kirkes Drengekor, however needed no introduction. She remembered them well, having seen them perform at a concert in her home country.

And that’s why Mads Bille’s question took her breath away, just for a moment.

- But yes, of course, I wanted to meet them. And it would give me the chance to see a bit more of wonderful Denmark. After several conversations and coffee meetings, Mads Bille and I agreed that I would work with the choir as an assistant. And what an opportunity! Meeting the boys opened up a completely new world, and it confirmed to me what my dream job looked like. I also suddenly had a real opportunity to learn Danish. The boys are full of energy, you never know what to expect when you go to work. They inspire me. So much. One day, I received a piece of paper with a number of common phrases along with a `translation´ of how to pronounce the words. In Danish …, Charlotte Rowan says and puts one hand on her chest to show the kind of warmth she was met with in the choir.

The dream job in Herning

So, to Rowan it is not about her talent coming to Herning. But more about her scoring her dream job.

- It is quite a bittersweet situation, the choir having to say goodbye to a legend. But at the same time, it is so perfect for me to land my dream job, says Charlotte Rowan.

She has no doubt that she will be challenged in this role.

- I know I have a lot to learn about the Danish singing community, and the treasure-trove of Danish traditional songs, but I will bring with me a bag full of English choral traditions, which I am sure will help keep Herning Kirkes Drengekor at the international standard it is at today.

- The choir is professional and of a world-class standard. That makes me nervous. But in a good way. Mads Bille has taught me a lot. He challenged me and showed me that he believes in me. When I had trouble going from Aarhus to Herning, he urged me to rent a car and just drive on the Danish roads. On the right side, I might add, says the conductor about the huge jump from being an unknown student from England to leading a very famous choir in Denmark.

In many ways, she couldn’t be more different to Mads Bille.

She is English, and she is a woman. But make no mistake, she has her ambitions. For herself, of course, but she also has ambitions for each and every member of the choir.

A gift to see them grow

- I have my principles. I love the Danes’ way of being together. I can be both funny and have fun with music. But I also have high expectations. Don’t mistake my kindness for weakness. I have clear rules. I believe rules are important for us to develop and for each of the boys’ progress. I am excited to see them grow and develop their music. They don’t have to become professional musicians or singers, because it is just a gift to see them grow, says Rowan. The choir director is also a little surprised that Danish mothers are often the ones who have the last say when their children have to make tough decisions.

- So, I actually don’t need to worry about whether or not the boys listen to what I have to say, Charlotte Rowan says with a smile on her face. Foto: Jens Peter Engedal

Drengekoret og Den Jyske Sangskole

The boys’ choir and Den Jyske Sangskole

Herning Kirkes Drengekor er stiftet i 1949 og er et af landets ældste drenge-mandskor, bestående af 50 drenge og mænd. For mange af de unge sangere er årene i drengekoret begyndelsen på et professionelt musikerliv som enten sanger, instrumentalist eller underviser. Dirigenten Mads Bille har stået i spidsen for koret fra 1984 -2020. I 1999 stiftede Mads Bille Den Jyske Sangskole på baggrund af et ønske om at give de unge sangere i drengekoret en mere dybdegående musikuddannelse. På sangskolen modtager sangerne i drengekoret undervisning i solosang, hørelære og klaver i et 10-årigt forløb med intensiv undervisning på højt niveau, som de følger i deres fritid. I dag varetager Den Jyske Sangskole et stort netværkssamarbejde og udbyder blandt andet kurser og masterclasses for musiklærere og korledere, foruden det daglige arbejde med de ca. 200 børn og unge sangere fra drengekoret og fra MidtVest Pigekor, som er elever på Sangskolen og den konservatorieforberedende MGK-uddannelse for unge sangtalenter. Læs mere på denjyskesangskole.dk.

Herning Kirkes Drengekor was founded in 1949 and is one of the country’s oldest male choirs, consisting of 50 boys and men. For many of the young singers, their years in the boys’ choir are the beginning of a professional life as a musician, singer, instrumentalist or teacher. The conductor Mads Bille was in charge of the choir from 1984 to 2020. In 1999, Mads Bille founded Den Jyske Sangskole based on a desire to provide the young singers in the boys’ choir with a more in-depth musical education. At the singing school, the singers of the boys’ choir receive training in solo singing, ear training and piano, as part of a ten-year, high-level, intensive training course, which they take in their spare time. Today, Den Jyske Sangskole is responsible for a large networking collaboration and offers courses and masterclasses for music teachers and choir directors, among other things. All of this is besides the daily work of teaching around 200 children and young singers from the boys’ choir as well as the girls’ choir, which is called MidtVest Pigekor. They all attend the singing school and the preparatory MGK education for the music conservatory for young musical talents. Read more at denjyskesangskole.dk.