Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1911-05-30
DANES WELCOME COUNTRYMEN
Singers of University of Copenhagen
Fine Lot Of Men.
BIG CONCERT AT THE oRPHEUM
visitors Made Welcome Daring the
Day and Gaests of the Local
Danes During the
Evening".

Evening"
Memories or TIE land Of there birth we're
brought direct 10 the Danes OF Omaha
yesterday. With open Frms they wei
coined the tourists OF the Danish Choral
society Of the University Of Copenhagen
And there was many a reunion and many
shout Of welcome as the body OF clean
limbed, full-chested strapplng graduates
and undergraduates OF the royal institu-
ton swung from the train TO meet the
enthusiastic greetings of their country
men,
Omaha is the turning point in this, the
first trip from the old world TO the new
ever undertaken by the society. From
here, Just twelve days out from New York.
the half hundred singers will sweep back
through the east and then embark for
home.
1t has been a succession OF triumphs for
the tourists since arriving in America
Entertainment unstinted has been accorded
them in every city in which they have
appeared And Omaha was among the
most lavish Of the entertainers.
The inherent skill and the enthusiasm
Of the scandip avian people in choral sing
ing was displayed at the concert at the
orpheum yesterday afternoon. The voices
are fresh. strong and well trained, and the
director, s. Levysohn, has the ensemble
under excellent control. This was espe-
cially noticeable in the gradations of vol
ume. He softened and swelled the tones
Of the fifty voices easily and with great
| expressiveness. The heavier passages
were given with an admirable uniformity
Of tUne especially in a rplendid song by
Reissiger olaf Trygavson."
Two soloists. Hedge Nissen. baritone, of
the Copenhagen Royal Opera company.
and Olaf Holboll tenor. were much APP
| plauded. Mr.. Nissen, who is the only pro-
| fessional musician in the chorus, has a
| powerful and rich voice, which he uses
carefully. Mr. HolboT, an architect by
| profession, has a voice of attractive
timbre. Two quartets made up from mem
bers OF the chorus were brought back for
repeated encores. The second quartet,
made up OF younger men whose names did
| not appear upon the program sang typical,
rolIiclking student songs and delighted their
audience.
The program was made mp almost en-
| tirely of Scandinavian works, but is va
! ried and interesting. Mr.. Nissen sang
."rbe Great White Host" by Grieg, and
Mr.. Holbon a Norwegian folksong.
From the time the delegation arrived
| in Omaha Sunday morning until a late
hour at night It was "one continual round
af festivities in their behalf. A committee
composed of Otto Wolf. Danish vice con-
sui for Nebraska; /. Sibbersen, B. +.
Petersen, Waldemar Miehaelsen and S. r.
Neble, met the singers in Council Bluffs
and accompanied them to Omaha During
the forenoon the visitors toured the city
in motors and then went to the homes
of compatriots for luncheon. A reception
lat No haM IaaS ai0 FOlInuyad
by q barbecue, completed the day. The
hall was packed.
The Glee club of the Danish societies
of Omaha filled the room with the air OF
the national song of Denmark as the
crowd filed into the room where the feast
was set. Mayor Dahlman welcomed the
singers on behalf of the citizens of
Omaha. and presented them with fish
he claims to have caught himself
On the speakers stand the picture of
the president was thanked by those of
King Frederick and Crown Prince Chris
tian. An orchestra played Danish airs,
there was singing by members OF the
society and with music by the Glee club
the first day OF the visitation was closed.
Mr.. Sibbersen will be the host of the
singers and other natives OF Denmark at
a luncheon at the Happy Hollow club at
noon today. Another concert will be given
by the society tonight at the Orpheum.
A shout of Joy was heard at the Union
station as the singers alighted from their
train. A man rushed through the crowd
surrounding the visitors and pushed his
way toward one of them. II was City
Engineer Schultz Of South Omaha. He
greeted John Olsen, an alumnus of the
Royal university. Schultz and Olsen were
classmates at that institution. They had
not seen each other for years. Olsen now
is with his father in large mercantile
business in Copenhagen.
Another reunion that caused much com
ment among the Danes was that of a
former instructor and u student in the
university. DR.. p. F. LANCE Of Glen
wood, Ia, formerly was lecturer on
psychology at the university. Christian
Gottschalch was a student In one OF his
classes. The recognition was instantaneous.
Perhaps the strangest case OF picking
out an identity was that In which Axel
Wage, a mail carrier in Omaha, figured.
For several years Wage has kept up a
correspondence with nephew he had
never seen in Copenhagen. Jorgen E. OIL
sen, a student in the university. Attracted
by the coming of his countrymen, Wage
was at the Union station when they ar
rived. He did not know that the nephew
was In the number. The men Of the
north are supposed to be slow to impulse.
But suddenly Wage bounded forward.
"Jorgen," he shouted, 'Jorgen." And
a tall clean-cut. handsome young man
answered the cry with Uncle. Uncle"