SOUND DUES recap / Jazz filled the city of Helsingør

Photo by Daniel Nissen Lauritsen

Last week from September 9-12, SOUND DUES filled the city of Helsingør with jazz as a part of the press launch event of the new music centerpiece in the commune. Niels played with some incredible musicians: from the breathtaking Lisa Nilsson live from Kronborg Castle with Mads Vinding and Albert “Tootie” Heath, to Manu Katché, Bill Evans, and Darryl Jones live from Stan Getz former Family Residence. The audience could also experience authentic jazz retail shows with Niels Lan Doky International Jazz Collective members all around the city, an intimate show as Jazz Café Divino with Albert “Tootie” Heath quartet as well as a global live stream- there was something for everyone, everywhere.

The name SOUND DUES stems from the toll used for Øresund in Elsinore which constituted up to two thirds of Denmark's state income in the 16th and 17th centuries - but is also a play on words, as “sound” and “dues” are words used in music, and particularly frequently within the jazz community. And our Musical Director, Danish/American/Vietnamese jazz artist, Niels Lan Doky, has paid many dues in his career journey to becoming the Knight of Jazz, now being called “the best pianist of his generation” and is knighted by HM The Queen of Denmark.

Having moved to Elsinore himself recently, Niels joins a strong legacy of former jazz icon residents of the municipality - which besides Stan Getz also includes Duke Jordan and Svend Asmussen - and launches SOUND DUES with the intention to help others discover the beauty in the city he now calls home.

SOUND DUES will present unique concerts and events not just in the historic city of Elsinore, but also across the municipality with numerous beautiful locations and cosy small villages. There's a connection to the sea & landscape as well as the aesthetics of the city. Community intertwines with jazz, fashion, coffee, food, art and more, as intimate jazz performances will flood into local shops and cafés - in parallel with the bigger ticketed flagship events.

• SEPTEMBER 9

  • GALA PREMIERE DINNER & INAUGURAL EVENT W/ LISA NILSSON, NIELS LAN DOKY, MADS VINDING & ALBERT “TOOTIE” HEATH - Live from Kronborg Castle

• SEPTEMBER 10

  • THE FUTURE OF JAZZ: A TALK W/ AMERICAN JAZZ LEGEND ALBERT “TOOTIE” HEATH

  • BILL EVANS, DARRYL JONES, MANU KATCHÉ & NIELS LAN DOKY - live from Konventum

  • TOUR OF HELSINGØR - live from 3 local retailers w/ Björn Ingelstam, Calle Brickman, Mathias Petri & Henrik Holst Hansen

• SEPTEMBER 11

  • A VERY SPECIAL TRIBUTE TO STAN GETZ W/ BILL EVANS, DARRYL JONES, MANU KATCHÉ & NIELS LAN DOKY INCLUDING GUEST OF HONOR, MONICA GETZ - live from Stan Getz former Family Residence (The concert was also live streamed globally)

  • JAZZ DINNER CRUISE W/ DESMOND SCAIFE JR - live from the ForSea Tycho Brahe Ferry sailing on the sound between Sweden and Denmark

  • TOUR OF HELSINGØR - live from 3 local retailers w/ Ida Astrid, Albert Waitløw, Kasper Tagel & Radik Wosko

• SEPTEMBER 12

  • ALBERT “TOOTIE” HEATH QUARTET - live from Café Divino in Espergærde

Below you can read more about SOUND DUES or swipe through images by Daniel Nissen Lauritsen from the entire duration of SOUND DUES 2021: