Anne Dvinge

Founder of LOW-FI Concerts, Anne Dvinge, grew up with music and with the will to always get up no matter how hard she falls. That drive and, not least, a passion for music, led to her creating Denmark's biggest platform for home concerts, an enterprise that makes sense more than ever now in a time of cultural restrictions and lack of community.

Music has always been a part of my life, ever since I was little. I've always played music, and I've always listened to music. My mother played classical music to me whenever she put me to bed, and she took me to the Danish National Symphony Orchestra's Thursday concert when I was just 3 years old. As an adult, a couple of times I've tried working in fields unrelated to music, but I've always returned to music, and every time it's like coming home.

I spent a number of years working as a music researcher at the University of Copenhagen, but then I reached a point where I felt the need to have a more direct impact on the world and to apply myself differently. LOW-FI began with a home concert that I attended myself, and it was my first experience of the Home Concert phenomenon. I was in this stranger's living room and was completely unprepared for what it would do to me. I entered the room and greeted the other members of the audience, which instantly felt really strange, as you don't normally talk to other people in the audience. But it felt both wonderful and surprising, because already then, I experienced and sensed a community spirit that felt special around the music.

Music keeps us rooted, and in these times that we're currently living in, it's easy to see just how much music brings us together and how much we need to meet in the music. Because you don't need a group of 5,000 or 10,000 people to have a great experience together. In fact, a room of just 20 people can create an even greater sense of community, a space where people can meet each other at an even higher level via the music. At least that's my experience of the music rooms and the shared experiences we create through LOW-FI's concerts.

My personal drive comes from my background and the basic principles I was brought up on. When you grow up with only one leg, it's like there are two rules that apply: one is never to measure yourself against other people's standards, because that immediately puts you on the outside, and it's just not worth spending time and energy on that - the other is that no matter how hard you fall, you get up and you move on. Because if you don't, you'll never get anywhere.

It might sound trite, but I actually believe that what began as the biggest challenge of my life has actually become my biggest trump card.

MASAI STORIES are portraits of women's lives, presented through thoughts and reflections from a group of dedicated and passionate women. The stories reflect on diversity, openness, courage and, not least, the freedom to be and want to be yourself. Through meetings these women, who all inspired us with their life choices and creativity, we wanted to create a special insight into women's lives. Our stories portray the strength and beauty that emerges when your life passions are allowed to blossom, and when you choose to listen to yourself and pursue your dreams.