Edition SAMFUNDET (the Society for the Publication of Danish Music) was founded in 1871, originally as a private non-commercial enterprise that was to ensure the preservation in printed form of musical works that are important in Danish cultural history.

Since its foundation some 130 years ago the publishing house has developed into one of the leading Danish publishers, representing one of the weightiest catalogues of solo, chamber and orchestral music.

Carl Nielsen, Rued Langgaard and Launy Grøndahl are among the composers whose works published by Edition SAMFUNDET are known all over the world to this day and are played again and again, but in addition the works of more or less all other Danish composers can be found in the catalogue.

In the 1990s the Society expanded its activities rapidly and the catalogue, the number of performances and the organization itself are all growing as never before. One of the biggest changes in the publishing house’s profile in this respect has been the presentation of a number of special series, among which The Classical Accordeon Edition was the first to be presented in 1994. Most recently the series The Vocal Edition, The Percussion Edition and The Contemporary Danish Organ have been launched.

The biggest international project so far involving Edition SAMFUNDET as initiator and catalyst is Symphonic Fairytales, which with the world premieres of ten new Danish orchestral works all over the globe in April 2005 will be helping to turn the spotlight on the bicentenary of the great Danish storyteller Hans Christian Andersen.

One of the primary reasons for the expansion of the publishing house is to be found in the steady — sometimes dramatic — rise in the demand from abroad for the Danish repertoire. In the course of the 1980s and 1990s Danish music achieved high status among international ensembles, orchestras and festival organizers, and the number of new commissions given to Danish composers and new performances of their works is growing steadily, not least on the Continent and in the USA. Danish music is on the concert bill as never before! And when the music is profiled, so is Edition SAMFUNDET.