(b Stockholm, 7 Feb 1871; d there, 20 Nov 1927). Swedish composer. Brought up in a cultivated and musical family, he composed from childhood and had little formal training. His earlier music is in a late Romantic style showing influences from Wagner, Liszt and Brahms, but from 1910 he moved towards a more classical manner, stimulated by contrapuntal studies and a profound concern with Beethoven. Much of his music has a Nordic colour, though he did not use folk material. His works include two symphonies (1903, 1915), two piano concertos, a Serenade (1913), cantatas (Sången, 1921), six string quartets (1894-1916) and songs. An admired pianist, he was also conductor of the Göteborgs Orkesterförening (1906-22), making the city a musical rival to Stockholm.
Stenhammar was a Swedish pianist and self-taught composer and conductor. His compositions began as typically late Romantic fare but evolved through three periods. In the first, his primary influences were Liszt, Brahms, and Wagner, but the music is imbued with a Nordic sound without specifically quoting Swedish folk song. His early operas Gildet på Solhaug (1892-1893) and Tirfing (1897-1898), although unsuccessful, were the pinnacles of this period. Stenhammar's second period began as he attempted to create a more concentrated and motivically oriented style, modeled on the great classicists Beethoven, Haydn, and Mozart. In spite of this, the music of this period loses none of its Nordic color. His brilliant cantata Ett folk (1904-1905) and the frequently played Second Piano Concerto are the most representative. Beginning in 1909, perhaps feeling his lack of training was detrimental to further development, Stenhammar engaged upon a nine-year course in strict counterpoint. The fruit of this study resulted in his last period, where the music becomes more contrapuntally and modally oriented, particularly in the last two of his six string quartets. Yet at the same time, his larger works, such as the orchestral Serenade and the Second Symphony, lose nothing of the earlier freshness and inspiration that make Stenhammar's music so attractive.
Stenhammar's early years were spent surrounded by culture, although he never undertook formal training except in piano. By 1900, he had established himself as a pianist, eventually giving over 1,000 concerts all over Sweden. He had also debuted as a conductor in 1897 with his own overture Excelsior!, and eventually went on to direct the Stockholm Philharmonic Society, the Royal Opera, the New Philharmonic Society, and the Göttesborgs Orkesterförening. Stenhammar eventually became one of the most important Scandinavian musicians of his era, and his compositions, including many songs, choral works, chamber and solo pieces, and theater and orchestral works represent the best music out of turn-of-the-century Sweden. ~ Steven Coburn, All Music Guide
Stenhammar was born in Stockholm, where he received his first musical education. He then went to Berlin to further his studies in music. He became a glowing admirer of German music, particularly that of Richard Wagner and Anton Bruckner. Stenhammar himself described the style of his First Symphony in F major as "idyllic Bruckner".[1] He subsequently sought to emancipate himself and write in a more "Nordic" style, looking to Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius for guidance. The latter's Symphony No. 2, especially, had a great effect on him, leading him to change his style and refuse to refer to his First Symphony as anything but a trivial piece, while only acknowledging having written his Second Symphony in G minor.
From 1906 to 1922 he was Artistic Director and chief conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony, the first full-time professional orchestra in Sweden. In this capacity, he organized many a performance of music by contemporary Scandinavian composers. Briefly, in 1909, he held the position of director of music at Uppsala University, where he was succeeded in the following year by Hugo Alfvén.
Wilhelm Stenhammar died of a stroke at 56 years of age in Jonsered in the historic province of Västergötland. He is buried in Gothenburg.
Work
His works were quite varied and included the two symphonies, a substantial Serenade for Orchestra, two piano concertos, four piano sonatas, a violin sonata, six string quartets, many songs and other vocal works, including several large-scale works for chorus or voices and orchestra (the early ballad "Florez och Blanzeflor" op. 3 written around 1891, "Ithaka" op. 21 from 1904, the cantatasEtt folk (A people) from 1905 and Sången (The song) op. 44 from 1921.
Writing in The Chamber Music Journal, R.H.R. Silvertrust notes that Stenhammar's set of six string quartets is the most important written between those of Brahms and Bartok. Whether or not this is so, there is no denying that Stenhammar's quartets represent a very important development during the twenty five years he was writing chamber music. Tonally, they range from the middle late Romantics to a style akin to mature Sibelius. Though not unknown by the Swedish chamber music public, his string quartets have been sadly neglected elsewhere. In 2009 Edition Silvertrust published the world premiere edition of his Allegro Brillante for piano quartet composed in 1891.
Stenhammar was considered the finest Swedish pianist of his time. Concert pianists who venture into the realm of the string quartet often wind up writing compositions which sound like they were composed at, and are perhaps better played at, the piano. That Stenhammar's works show no such trait is due entirely to the fact that for nearly half of his life, he worked intimately with the Aulin Quartet, the top Swedish string quartet of its day and one of the best then performing in Europe. In fact, he toured throughout Europe with them for many years and a piano quintet was nearly always featured on their programs. Thus it is no accident that his quartets show a fine grasp of instrumental timbre and technique. The part writing is sure, always idiomatic and evenly distributed.
List of compositions
Orchestra works
Symphony No. 1 in F major (1902/03, withdrawn)
Symphony No. 2 in G minor, Opus 34 (1911-15)
Symphony No. 3 in C major (1918/19, fragment)
Serenade in F major, Opus 31 (1908-13, rev. 1919)
“Excelsior! ” Concert Overture, Opus 13 (1896) *
Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Opus 1 (1893)
Piano Concerto No. 2 in D minor, Opus 23 (1904-07)
“Two Sentimental Romances” for violin and orchestra, Opus 28 (1910)
Opera and choral works
“The Celebration on Solhaug” (opera), Opus 6 (1893)
“Tirfing” (opera), Opus 15 (1898)
“Ett Folk” (cantata), Opus 22 (1905)
“Sangen” (cantata), Opus 44 (1921)
vocal works ** approx. 60 songs
Chamber music
String Quartet No. 1 in C major, Opus 2 (1894)
String Quartet No. 2 in C minor, Opus 14 (1896)
String Quartet No. 3 in F major, Opus 18 (1900)
String Quartet No. 4 in A minor, Opus 25 (1909)
String Quartet No. 5 in C major, Opus 29 (1910)
String Quartet No. 6 in D minor, Opus 35 (1916)
Violin Sonata in A minor, Opus 19 (1899/1900)
Allegro ma non tanto in A Major for Piano Trio (1895)
Allegro Brillante in E flat Major for Piano Quartet (1891)
The Chamber Music Journal (1994), V (2): 1,4. Riverwoods, IL: Cobbett Association. ISSN1535-1726.
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