The Society Music in Linköping MIL

– Arranges the Östergötland Music Days annually.
– Works for the good of musical life and to represent the interest of the public.
– Awards the Crusell Scholarship to promising young Swedish conductors.

MIL is a non-profit organization with no political or religious commitments.
Mrs. Ingrid Haking Raaby is its president.

Your support is needed!
Become a member by paying 150 SEK to PlusGiro account 79 24 40-0, payment recipient: MIL
For additional family members, the price is 100 SEK.

Contact

E-mail: info@musikilinkoping.se

Background

In 1970, a group of SAAB employed engineers decided to improve the musical life of Linköping. To assemble people interested in music they formed Musik i Linköping (MIL). The society started with great ambitions and with many items on its agenda.

Soon, however, the problem of the lack of a concert hall took all its energy, and a great manifestation was the exhibition The House of Music in Linköping in 1974, motored by MIL. In it there were several suggestions for a location as well as for the actual concert hall. It resulted in the community of Linköping announcing a competition for architects which ended in a city council decision in 1976 to build the winning suggestion “Aulin” in Trädgårdsföreningen (=Garden Society) Park. Owing to a change of the political majority in the city council, the decision was unfortunately not realised.

During these years several members of MIL travelled around to study new concert halls in Sweden and Europe. In 1983 MIL started collecting funds for a concert hall to emphasize the demands and the interest of the public. By 1984 MIL was ready to present its own suggestion: The Crusell Hall, a concert hall blasted into the rock in Trädgårdsföreningen Park with The Berwaldhallen in Stockholm as a model.

This suggestion from MIL was also not realised. Instead, the city decided to build a City Community Centre with a concert hall. This building was, after a series of financial irregularities renamed ”Linköping Concert & Congress”. The concert hall itself was later named ”The Crusell Hall”, thanks to the efforts of MIL.

In 1987, following these events, the MIL Concert Hall Fund was changed into the Crusell Scholarship Fund. Through energetic, non-profit financial administration, starting with a capital of 60,000 SEK, it has since then been possible to award Crusell scholarships to eighteen young Swedish conductors.

In 1998 the board of MIL decided to form a “Section Music Days” in order to arrange The Östergötland Music Days. Members of MIL help in planning, administering, marketing, tickets sales etc.