In a unique cooperation between the royal houses of Thailand and Denmark the Danish musician Michael Hanson has produced a CD, which he gave HM the King of Thailand in an audience last week.
The Danish musician Michael Hanson was on Thursday 1 August 2013 granted an audience with HRH Maha Chakri Princess Sirindhorn of Thailand. The audience was held in order to present the Princess with an audio CD as a gift to HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, produced by Michael Hanson himself.
The music on the CD is written by HM King of Thailand and recorded in Copenhagen accompanied by HRH Prince Consort Henrik of Denmark on piano. Furthermore the vocal is song by the lead singer from the Danish band Michael Learns To Rock (MLTR).
Michael Hanson is the musical brain behind the project and has mixed the recordings from the three parts to one track. He has enjoyed the process of making the CD very much. The arrangement was done in collaboration with Dr Pathorn Srikaranonda.
“It has been an amazing journey to work with the music written by the His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, and I hope it will be possible to continue the cooperation in the future,” he says.
A unique cooperation
Except from the track Echo, written by HM the King, the CD contains the poem Le Fleuve written and recited by HRH Prince Consort Henrik of Denmark. The audio CD as a product is a symbol of the good and strong relationship between Denmark and Thailand, explains Michael Hanson, who has enjoyed travelling in Thailand for several years.
“It is a gift from Denmark to Thailand, celebrating the relationship between the two countries.”
The Royal Danish ambassador who also attended the audience agrees.
“We see this as a very important promotion for the relationship between Denmark and Thailand. It is a very unique thing to see such a collaboration, and then on top of it having a Danish rock band who has its biggest audience in Thailand to join the project. So for us it is a unique product project and a good gift to HM the King of Thailand,” Danish ambassador Mikael Hemniti Winther says.
The start of the project goes back to 2012, where Michael Hanson was invited by then Royal Thai ambassador in Denmark to Thailand Khun Piyawat Niyomrerks to attend the 50 years celebration of the Thai elephant in the Copenhagen ZOO. A speech by HRH Prince Consort Henrik of Denmark inspired the Danish musician.
“Suddenly it all came together, the idea of celebrating the friendship of the two nations with a unique piece of music,” he tells.
Worth the hard work
Then all the research started and though it has been challenging now and then to get all three parts to work together at the same time, it has been worth all the struggling to finish the product, the musician says. Especially HM the King of Thailand’s music and a performance by Dr Pathorn Srikaranonda, His Majestys right hand man in His Majesty’s band have inspired the Danish musician
“I fell in love with His Majesty’s composition. The song Echo was very touching for me to hear,” he says.
In addition to that he found the poem of HRH Prince Consort Henrik of Denmark very relevant for the essence of the relationship between the two countries.
“It is like planting a seed, and I see the friendship flourish forever from now on,” Michael Hanson says. He adds that it came natural to him that the Danish band MLTR got involved in the project, because the band already is held in great respect in Thailand and Asia in general.
New event on its way
The audience on Thursday 1 August lasted for 40 minutes. HRH Maha Chakri Sirindhorn was pleased to receive the gift and ensured that it would be given to HM the King Thailand, says Michael Hanson.
The Thai media covered the audience very intensively, and there is probably a good reason to keep the attention on the project. There are more ideas in the melting pot, Michael Hanson reveals.
“We hope that we will soon be able to present an event in Bangkok with a live performance of the music from the CD. At the moment I am awaiting sponsorship to support the show,” he adds.
It will also soon be possible to acquire the audio CD Echo to an “affordable” price, Michael Hanson promises.
Some of the profits from the sale will be donated to an elephant foundation to support the elephants and the elephant workers in the Surin province in Northern Thailand.
