The voices of six men singing in three different European languages will ricochet off of the shell in the Madsen Recital Hall.

Basix, a Danish A Cappella group, will perform Oct. 8 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $6 from the Fine Arts Ticket Office at 801-422-4322 or byutickets.com.

The group will perform cover songs along with their own songs. Some of their unique selections are in Danish, English and Turkish.

Niels N¿rggard and John Kj¿ller founded the group in 1995 as a quintet A Cappella group. In 1999, a sixth member, Peter Bach, joined the group and Basix was created.

In 2001, the group placed second at the Danish pre-competition for the European Song Contest and since then it has been a full-time professional A Cappella band.

N¿rggard said the group thrives off each other and their contributions to the band. Every member has a voice in the decisions of the group and no one person controls the group more than another.

"Basix is a very democratic band which means we are each other's bosses and that we make major decisions together," N¿rggard said in an e-mail. "Each Basix member has an area of expertise, for example musical director, tour manager, graphic designer, to mention a few. It means we have responsibilities and initiatives on our specific area. ... Still, you can always ask the other members for help."

N¿rggard said the group wants the audience to be engaged in Danish culture. Through their music they want the audience to feel part of Denmark.

"We would like the audience to feel like they have been invited in our homes," he said. "We want them to feel comfortable and well entertained. We see our role in the concert as being hosts and we hope to give the audience an unforgettable experience."

Basix is on tour in the United States and has concerts in Laramie, Wyo., and St. George.

Annette Boe, a former BYU student and friend of members of Basix, contacted Erlend Peterson, vice president for international affairs at BYU. She said there was an open day in the tour schedule and asked if he wanted Basix to perform at BYU.

Boe said she placed Peterson and the band in touch with each other.

Peterson said there are strong ties between BYU and Denmark that are encouraged to grow through opportunities to experience both cultures.

"The relationship originated from the natural source of heritage because many immigrants in the early church came from Denmark," Peterson said. "...A donor also established an endowment to bring a lecturer every year for a lecture series on Denmark."

Peterson said along with a yearly lecture, one high school graduate from Frederikshavn, Denmark is awarded a scholarship for the first year at BYU. Frederikshavn is the hometown of the donor.



Copyright Brigham Young University 8 Oct 2008