Edition·S was founded in 1871 and has since published works by more than 250 Danish composers, managing nearly 4,000 works – primarily from the mid-19th century to the present day. For many years, Edition·S has been a pioneer in the digitisation of sheet music collections within an industry that traditionally works with analogue processes. Since 2010, we have produced digital copy masters for publication and has continuously digitised older scores. Nevertheless, a significant portion of the works still exists only as physical sheet music stored in the publisher’s archive in the former radio building in Frederiksberg, and some of the materials are fragile after decades of handling.
Thanks to the financial support, we can now carry out a systematic digitisation of approximately 500 rental works, 500 physical copy masters, and 20 composer folders filled with historical documentation such as sketches, dedications, and corrections. The project will be kicked of early 2026.
“Digitisation is essential to ensure that our musical heritage is not lost. The project guarantees that both historical and more recent works can be used by future generations of musicians and researchers – and that previously hidden repertoire can finally be discovered by the musical community in Denmark and internationally,” says Eva Havshøj Ohrt, CEO of Edition·S.
The digitisation project draws on Edition·S’s experience with large-scale preservation initiatives. Between 2020 and 2022, Edition·S – also with support from the A.P. Møller Foundation, among others – carried out an extensive digitisation of Else Marie Pade’s (1924–2016) complete catalogue of sheet music, reel-to-reel tapes, and more. The result is a restored and fully digitised collection that has contributed to a significant revival of her music in recent years, with new concert performances and recordings.
The upcoming digitisation will make it possible to preserve original materials in high resolution – including handwritten corrections, notes, and historical annotations. At the same time, we will be able to minimise physical handling of the fragile originals and ensure that especially valuable materials are transferred to the Royal Danish Library.
Edition·S has received state support ever since its early beginnings, with the purpose of strengthening and developing musical life in Denmark and promoting Danish music internationally.
“We stand on the shoulders of a 150-year tradition of publishing art music that cannot survive under market conditions alone. This gives Denmark a truly unique cultural heritage – part of the foundation for today’s Danish composers, who enjoy significant international recognition. With this project, we can fully open the archives for the first time,” says Eva Havshøj Ohrt.