Malene Rigtrup

Associate Professor, Jazz/Pop Choir Directing, Vocal Arrangement

Malene Rigtrup is one of the main teachers in the subjects Rhythmic choral conducting and Vocal arrangement/composition at the departments in both Aarhus and Aalborg (RAMA Vocal Center). She has taught at The Royal Academy of Music since 2002.

At DJM Malene has been at the head of several development projects (FOKU), i.a. “The Composing Conductor” – a combined artistic and educational development project about the creation of new, idiomatic choral works in collaboration with students, as well as teaching material.

Malene has a great interest in the development of newer hymns and collaborates with e.g. Janne Mark and Iben Krogsdal. At DJM, she has led the artistic development project “Syng for alverdens urolige hjerter” (in danish), which aimed to develop vocal arrangements in the borderland between “rhythmic” and “classical” music.

As a vocal arranger, Malene has written music for a large number of vocal groups and choirs throughout Europe, including Rajaton and Vocal Line. She is also associated with the publishers Musikal Spezial (Germany) and Chorusonline (Holland). Malene, in collaboration with Morten Kjær and Ørehænger, has published several teaching books on choral methodology as well as various sheet music publications.

Over the past 20 years, Malene has created countless workshops for choirs and choir leaders throughout Europe. For 10 years she was a singer and co-leader in the pioneering Aarhus choir Vocal Line. As a singer and songwriter, Malene has released the EP Not Later Love with her own compositions.
Malene has also, since 2002, been a teacher at Aarhus Music School as a teacher of solo singing and as conductor for the elite choir Maestra.