Claus Høxbroe
- Denmark -
Claus Høxbroe was born in Herlev, a suburb of Copenhagen, in 1980.
Since his debut in 2006, Claus Høxbroe has published over 30 publications. He has made countless contributions to newspapers, journals, magazines, books, anthologies, as well as plays and teaching courses, and he has performed on stage over 3,000 times in eight countries.
His poetry often focuses on the parts of Copenhagen that the upper class doesn’t see: The dive bars, dog racing, drug abuse etc.
Høxbroe is also the holder of the Audience Award for Poetry Day and the Dan Turèll Award.
With his great dedication to the jazzy and rhythmic parts of poetry, the beat poet and performer Claus Høxbroe has marked himself as one of the most significant figures in recent Danish poetry.
He was born and raised in the suburban town of Herlev, but has lived in Copenhagen most of his life, a city that he continues to admire and has explored throughout his writing.
Claus Høxbroe's work process resembles that of a documentarist. He does not sit down at a desk to write his poems, but exposes himself to reality in the same way as famous documentarians before him. But in Claus Høxbroe's case, the results are not documentary films or non-fiction books, but poetry.
Claus Høxbroe has, among other things, lived as homeless, moved out into depopulated areas, studied special subcultures and places such as a dog racing track in Kallerup.
This world-centered approach to poetry has made him popular in Denmark, where he often visits schools, companies, festivals etc. - places and audiences that are far from the usual poetry audience, but who can get an immediate experience out of hearing Claus Høxbroe's rhythmic poetry.
He describes his work like this:
“I only write about things that I myself have experienced, seen, heard, felt, thought and felt. I make myself available to writing, cultivated living writing, whether it is moving, being homeless, staying in hotels or traveling, I use myself to open up experiences, let them flow through me and place them on paper. From the bigger things like political currents, society, the city's changes to the very small intimate things like one too many beers, the joy of a good cigar, a trip to the racetrack or a breakup with a girlfriend.”
Claus Høxbroe is known for being a very present performer who often goes on stage with musicians and who can improvise poetry based on cues from the audience. His poetic shows alternate between humor and seriousness, but are constantly alluring.
Poetry
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The ice cubes in the glass / Isterningerne i glasset
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There is only / Der er kun
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Webersgade / Webersgade
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To lose oneself / At miste sig selv
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At night, I see the light / Om natten ser jeg lyset
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He hangs around Nørreport / Han hænger Nørreport
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Knife in the heart / Kniven i hjertet
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Spirits missed / Ånder savnet
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Unobstructed view / Frit udsyn
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He took his own life / Han tog livet af sig
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Amager decapitation / Amager halshug
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Checking what the time isn’t / Tjekker hvad klokken ikke er
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Slagtergården | Vesterbro | Copenhagen / Slagtergården | Vesterbro | København
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Spring snaps with jazz / Foråret knipser jazzet
