“It feels like a family”
“There’s no better environment for this than a church,” says Olga, a regular participant in the Music & Family Time classes offered by Folkekirken for Internationals. “The acoustics are great, and there’s a lot of light and a lot of space. This church has a beautiful energy.”
The classes take place in Eliaskirken in Copenhagen’s Vesterbro district. They are in English and explore the Danish tradition of “baby-hymn-singing”, where parents and their babies and toddlers meet in churches to sing together and enjoy music, movement and rhythm.
Meet Olga from Ukraine who joins “Music & Family Time” with her little daughter.
Olga found the classes via an online search after she moved to Copenhagen in 2023 with her daughter Skylar who is just under two years old. They have been attending for about a year – first in classes for babies up to the age of 12 months and now in classes for toddlers aged 1 to 3 years. Both classes take place on select Saturday mornings.
“The songs are beautiful, and it’s a very gentle environment. Skylar is very calm when the class goes on, and she’s never overstimulated. I think she loves Sarah and her voice,” Olga says with reference to Sarah Maxted, an experienced church musician and music educator who leads the classes.
Olga was born in Ukraine and have lived in Germany and the UK before moving to Copenhagen where she works in the sales department of an international software company. The Music & Family Time classes have helped her find friends in the city. In between the baby and toddler classes, there’s a one-hour community session with the chance to chat over coffee and snacks.
“You meet people here all the time,” Olga says, “and there’s a lot of likeminded people with international experience. It’s feels like a family or community, especially for me as a single parent. Copenhagen is a long way from home, and it can be hard to find friends here. It’s extremely important to have this kind of community.”