Orphei Drängar is a Swedish male choir and singing society founded in 1853, based in Uppsala

Uppsala

- Economy :Today Uppsala is well established in medical research and recognized for its leading position in biotechnology.*Abbott Medical Optics *GE Healthcare*Pfizer *Phadia, an offshoot of Pharmacia*Fresenius*Q-Med...

 and one of the two notable singing societies traditionally affiliated with the university

Uppsala University

Uppsala University is a research university in Uppsala, Sweden, and is the oldest university in Scandinavia, founded in 1477. It consistently ranks among the best universities in Northern Europe in international rankings and is generally considered one of the most prestigious institutions of...

 there (the other one being the two decades older Allmänna Sången, "The Common Song"). Sångsällskapet means "The singing society", Orphei means "of Orpheus", while the Swedish word drängar is the plural of dräng, "farmhand".

The society is said to have been founded on 30 October 1853, when a dozen student singers gathered at the Hotel d'Upland in Uppsala to sing songs by Carl Michael Bellman

Carl Michael Bellman

was a Swedish poet and composer. Bellman is a central figure in the Swedish song tradition and remains a very important influence in Swedish music, as well as in Scandinavian literature in general, to this day....

.