About Peter Hvalkof
- Peter Hvalkof books global music acts for Roskilde Festival - and he is partly responsible for getting WOMEX to Copenhagen - photo: Thomas Kjær
It all started with ”She Loves You”!
The Beatles were unavoidable, but it was by the many "beat" orchestras that were on holiday on the Danish island of Bornholm, playing concerts all summer long. Here I started dreaming about having my part in music.
Alrune Rod, Skousen & Ingemann, Burnin Red Ivanhoe, oh man those were grand days. But it was far from this small island to where things were really happening.
I gained my first booking experience in high school at Rønne Statsskole.
Learned even more in the town of Holbæk, first in connection with my education and later in Holbæk Jazzklub, which was a fantastic, active club where both international and Danish jazz and rock acts played.
My first visit at Roskilde Festival was in 1974, and it was like a visit to Nirvana. The Incredible String Band – I expected folk music but saw a great and twisted hippie band. I became addicted.
When I later had to find work, I was offered a job in Roskilde. It didn't sound too shabby to live in a town that each year offered such a fantastic festival, so from 1980 I have been a volunteer, camping guard, stage guard at Orange Stage (for instance, during the famous U2 concert in ’82), interviewer, office staff…
In 1996 I was attending a meeting with the previous manager Leif Skov regarding some school concerts I was arranging. And after the meeting he asked me if I had an extra couple of minutes because he wanted to know if I would be interested in being a part of the festival's booking group.
Man, would I?!
Ever since I have been very busy travelling the world, looking for the best music it has to offer. And let me tell you, the world is big, and there is lots of great music out there, just waiting to get the chance to play.
