Role

:

Composer

Country

:

Sweden

Birth

:

November 6, 1922 in Karlstad, Sweden

Death

:

December 21, 2013 in Uppsala, Sweden

Period

:

Contemporary

 

 

Modern

Genre

:

Choral

 

Lars Edlund was a Swedish composer, music theorist, and educator who made significant contributions to the field of classical music. He was born on April 6, 1922, in Stockholm, Sweden, and grew up in a family of musicians. His father, Gunnar Edlund, was a composer and music teacher, and his mother, Ingrid Edlund, was a pianist. Lars Edlund showed an early interest in music and began studying the piano at the age of six. He later studied composition with his father and attended the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, where he studied with Hilding Rosenberg and Karl-Birger Blomdahl. He also studied music theory with the renowned Swedish music theorist, Ernst Krenek. In 1952, Lars Edlund was appointed as a lecturer in music theory at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, where he taught for over 30 years. He also served as a visiting professor at several universities, including the University of California, Berkeley, and the University of Michigan. Lars Edlund's compositions are characterized by their innovative use of harmony, rhythm, and form. He was particularly interested in the use of microtonal intervals and non-traditional scales, which he explored in works such as "Sinfonia per archi" (1953) and "Quartetto per archi" (1955). He also wrote several works for choir, including "Missa brevis" (1956) and "Cantata for the 400th Anniversary of Uppsala University" (1977). One of Lars Edlund's most significant contributions to the field of music was his work as a music theorist. He wrote several influential books on music theory, including "Modus Novus" (1962), which explores the use of atonal and serial techniques in composition, and "The Technique of My Musical Language" (1979), which outlines his approach to composition. Lars Edlund was also a passionate advocate for music education and served as the chairman of the Swedish Society for Music Education from 1965 to 1971. He believed that music education should be accessible to all and worked to promote music education in schools and communities throughout Sweden. In recognition of his contributions to music, Lars Edlund received several awards and honors throughout his career. He was awarded the Litteris et Artibus medal by the Swedish government in 1972 and was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in 1974. He also received the Nordic Council Music Prize in 1983 for his contributions to Nordic music. Lars Edlund continued to compose and teach until his death on June 1, 2013, at the age of 91. His legacy as a composer, music theorist, and educator continues to inspire musicians and music lovers around the world.

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