Sibelius is generally considered the "doyen" of Scandinavian composers, but he is trailed very closely by the likes of Grieg and Nielsen.

This "holy trinity" of Scandinavian music often overshadows other outstanding composers who also came from some of the world's most northern latitudes.

My question to the forum: What Scandinavian composers do you enjoy?

I will admit, I am not too big on Grieg or Nielsen. Neither are able to grab my attention they way Sibelius does, though both were brilliant composers.

I particularly enjoy the music of Sweden's Ture Rangstrom and Iceland's Jon Leifs. Hugo Alfven can also be fun, though his symphonies seem to lack formal direction. 9After you hear a Sibelius symphony, your expectations for other symphonies become extremely high!)

Just a few days ago I bought a disc containing the 1st Symphony of the Danish composer Rued Langgaard...pretty good late Romantic stuff...that was written when Langgaard was only 17!!

I'm also familair with the Norwegian Geirr Tveitt whose also pretty enjoyable.

I've yet to hear Stenhammar, but I know he is an important musical figure for the region, so I promise to explore him soon.

I must be a pedant here, I'm afraid (or pick a nit, if you like):

Sibelius is not a Scandinavian composer because Finland isn't part of Scandinavia - although it is often mistakenly believed to be so and even some Finns have given up trying to change people's minds. [Cf. Northern Ireland and Great Britain - or, to play devil's advocate, Canada and the USA.] The preferred term is 'Nordic', unless you live in Germany in which case 'nordisch' has some unpleasant historical overtones that don't need to be restated here.

But to turn to the question: Nielsen, some Stenhammar, some Alfvén, rather less Grieg.
At the other extreme, Peterson-Berger is about as inspiring for me as a bowl of cold porridge.

Well, perhaps you are right...Scandinavia only makes reference to the Scandinavian peninsula which would only cover Sweden and Norway. So where does that leave Denmark and Iceland? Often those two countries are included in "Scandinavia" because of cultural and linguistic ties to the "big two," Sweden and Norway. Finland is controverial in this discussion because of the linguistic and cultural gap.

So what's what? Perhaps "Nordic" is a preferred term here.

At any rate, this region is a musical powerhouse and so many composers, conductors, musicians and vocalists have emerged from this area.

Interesting, Andrew, that Grieg doens't sit too high on your list. God knows I've tried with him, but he just does not resonate with me. While his art is well crafted, it just lacks a certain "spiritual complexity" that one finds in Sibelius.

A small dose of Grieg is maybe OK, but once you notice how heavily his production depended on Norwegian Peasant Dances, Hallings, Gangars, Cow Calls [continue as nauseam], often the same tunes arranged slightly differently, then you end up with the firm view that he depended all too heavily on things that come out of cows - but perhaps from the 'methane' rather than the 'halitosis' end…

To contribute to the "Scandinavian" discussion, during her visit to Marienbad Ms. Lättilä made frequent use of the term Nordic, which she seemed to use naturally and comfortably. I think that would probably be the best term.

Honestly, I enjoy much of Grieg including the piano concerto, both Peer Gynt suites, the Symphonic dances and the Norweigian Dances. It's music that is easy to conduct and comunicates uncomplicated ideas effectively and without pretense. I do however concur with Andrew B that one could use a little less of the cow-calls...

I certainly enjoy Grieg in small doses, he was essentially a master of the miniature.

Stenhammar of course, his second symphony is a gem.

I have a tape of music by Hilding Rosenberg, his dance Suite 'Orpheus in Town' which is very interesting. He was a prolific composer and I have always intended to explore more. On writing a symphony Rosenberg said 'I try to gather all my musical and human experiences and give them a synthetic formulation'.

During the first world war Rosenberg heard the fourth symphony of Sibelius which he described as a cataclysmic, musical experience. He was shaken by the performance. Already before this event he had Sibelius as a great master and he mentions that the slow movements etherial intensity was especially important to him. In the Spring of 1950 he visited Sibelius at Ainola.-kp

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