Sven Einar Englund
Encyclopedia
Sven Einar Englund was a Finnish
composer
.
on June 17. 1916; he died 27th. June 1999. He married twice: in 1941 to Meri Mirjam Gyllenbogel who died 1956 (they had one son and two daughters including the ballerina and choreographer Sorella Englund
) and in 1958 he married Maynie Siren – a singer - with whom he had one son.
Perhaps the most important Finnish symphonist since Sibelius, Englund was a native Swedish speaker who often felt that his career was sidelined from the mainstream of Finnish music.
He was 17 when he began studies at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki in 1933. Already a considerable pianist, he continued his studies with Martti Paavola and Ernst Linko, while studying composition with Bengt Carlson and Selim Palmgren
.
Following his graduation in 1941, Englund was conscripted into military service. During his time in the army he suffered a minor injury, which brought to an end his hopes of pursuing a career as a concert pianist. He would often recall the bizarre, though life-threatening incident, with a smile.
His Second Symphony, the "Blackbird Symphony", soon followed the first.
In 1949 Englund was awarded a grant to study in the United States with Aaron Copland
, and also played jazz with Leonard Bernstein
. It has been suggested that Englund's study with the American master consisted of discussions about music and composition, Copland having realised that there was little he could teach the younger man.
Throughout the 1950s he produced a series of large-scale works including Sinuhe, a ballet (1953) originally for piano though later orchestrated and Odysseus (1959), written for the Swedish dancer and choreographer Brigit Cullberg, a Cello Concerto (1954) and the First Piano Concerto (1955), as well as film scores and incidental music. His score for Erik Blomberg
’s Valkoinen peura (The White Reindeer) which won a Jussi Award (the Finnish Oscar), and his score for Max Frisch
’s play The Great Wall of China are particularly notable.
He composed music for twenty films, as well as works for choir including the Hymnus Sepulcralis (1975)
During the 1950s, with his second wife, the singer Maynie Siren he performed a cabaret act; he was music critic of the Swedish language Hufvudstadsbladet
, and he taught at the Sibelius Academy from 1958 until 1982.
His Third Symphony (1971) appeared 23 years after his second and signalled his return to composition having written only a few works during the 1960s. There soon followed his Fourth (1976) and Fifth Symphonies (1977) and the Concerto for Twelve Cellos (1981).
Englund’s Sixth Symphony (1984), subtitled Aphorisms is in six movements for chorus and orchestra; his last symphony - No. 7 - was composed in 1988, coinciding with the onset of the heart disease that signalled a decline in health and would ultimately lead to his death; his Clarinet Concerto of 1991 was completed shortly before a stroke rendered further composition physically impossible.
Later he suffered from kidney failure, which necessitated dialysis for the remainder of his life.
Englund also composed chamber music, including a suite for solo cello and a sonata for cello and piano; there are works for violin and piano, solo trombone and solo piano.
His memoirs I Skuggan av Sibelius (In the shadow of Sibelius) were published in 1997
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
.
Life
Sven Einar Englund was born at Ljugarn in GotlandGotland
Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...
on June 17. 1916; he died 27th. June 1999. He married twice: in 1941 to Meri Mirjam Gyllenbogel who died 1956 (they had one son and two daughters including the ballerina and choreographer Sorella Englund
Sorella Englund
Sorella Englund is a former soloist and character dancer with the Royal Danish Ballet. She has been a keen supporter of August Bournonville, staging a number of his ballets in Denmark and abroad.-Biography:...
) and in 1958 he married Maynie Siren – a singer - with whom he had one son.
Perhaps the most important Finnish symphonist since Sibelius, Englund was a native Swedish speaker who often felt that his career was sidelined from the mainstream of Finnish music.
He was 17 when he began studies at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki in 1933. Already a considerable pianist, he continued his studies with Martti Paavola and Ernst Linko, while studying composition with Bengt Carlson and Selim Palmgren
Selim Palmgren
Selim Gustaf Adolf Palmgren , dubbed "The Finnish Chopin", was a Finnish composer, pianist, and conductor. Palmgren was born in Pori, Finland, February 16, 1878. He studied at the Conservatory in Helsinki from 1895 to 1899, then continued his piano studies in Berlin with Ansorge, Berger and Busoni...
.
Following his graduation in 1941, Englund was conscripted into military service. During his time in the army he suffered a minor injury, which brought to an end his hopes of pursuing a career as a concert pianist. He would often recall the bizarre, though life-threatening incident, with a smile.
Music
Englund's first work for large orchestra was his First Symphony (1946), which became known as the "War Symphony". This was no prentice piece; the use of counterpoint, dissonance and orchestration of singular clarity reveals a master at work.His Second Symphony, the "Blackbird Symphony", soon followed the first.
In 1949 Englund was awarded a grant to study in the United States with Aaron Copland
Aaron Copland
Aaron Copland was an American composer, composition teacher, writer, and later in his career a conductor of his own and other American music. He was instrumental in forging a distinctly American style of composition, and is often referred to as "the Dean of American Composers"...
, and also played jazz with Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein
Leonard Bernstein August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist. He was among the first conductors born and educated in the United States of America to receive worldwide acclaim...
. It has been suggested that Englund's study with the American master consisted of discussions about music and composition, Copland having realised that there was little he could teach the younger man.
Throughout the 1950s he produced a series of large-scale works including Sinuhe, a ballet (1953) originally for piano though later orchestrated and Odysseus (1959), written for the Swedish dancer and choreographer Brigit Cullberg, a Cello Concerto (1954) and the First Piano Concerto (1955), as well as film scores and incidental music. His score for Erik Blomberg
Erik Blomberg
Erik Blomberg was a Finnish cinematographer, film producer, screenwriter and film director. He was married to actress Mirjami Kuosmanen.-External links:...
’s Valkoinen peura (The White Reindeer) which won a Jussi Award (the Finnish Oscar), and his score for Max Frisch
Max Frisch
Max Rudolf Frisch was a Swiss playwright and novelist, regarded as highly representative of German-language literature after World War II. In his creative works Frisch paid particular attention to issues relating to problems of human identity, individuality, responsibility, morality and political...
’s play The Great Wall of China are particularly notable.
He composed music for twenty films, as well as works for choir including the Hymnus Sepulcralis (1975)
During the 1950s, with his second wife, the singer Maynie Siren he performed a cabaret act; he was music critic of the Swedish language Hufvudstadsbladet
Hufvudstadsbladet
Hufvudstadsbladet is the highest-circulation Swedish-language newspaper in Finland. Its headquarters are located in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. The name of the newspaper translates approximately into "The Capital City Newspaper", hufvudstad being 19th century Swedish for capital...
, and he taught at the Sibelius Academy from 1958 until 1982.
His Third Symphony (1971) appeared 23 years after his second and signalled his return to composition having written only a few works during the 1960s. There soon followed his Fourth (1976) and Fifth Symphonies (1977) and the Concerto for Twelve Cellos (1981).
Englund’s Sixth Symphony (1984), subtitled Aphorisms is in six movements for chorus and orchestra; his last symphony - No. 7 - was composed in 1988, coinciding with the onset of the heart disease that signalled a decline in health and would ultimately lead to his death; his Clarinet Concerto of 1991 was completed shortly before a stroke rendered further composition physically impossible.
Later he suffered from kidney failure, which necessitated dialysis for the remainder of his life.
Englund also composed chamber music, including a suite for solo cello and a sonata for cello and piano; there are works for violin and piano, solo trombone and solo piano.
His memoirs I Skuggan av Sibelius (In the shadow of Sibelius) were published in 1997
Orchestral
- Symphonies
- Symphony No. 1 The War Symphony (1946)
- Symphony No. 2 Blackbird (1948)
- Symphony No. 3 Barbarossa (1971)
- Symphony No. 4 Nostalgic, for strings and percussion (1976)
- Symphony No. 5 Fennica (1977)
- Symphony No. 6 Aphorisms (1984)
- Symphony No. 7 (1988)
Concertante
- Cello Concerto (1954)
- Piano Concerto No. 1 (1955)
- Piano Concerto No. 2 (1974)
- Concerto for 12 Cellos (1980–1981)
- Violin Concerto (1981)
- Flute Concerto (1985)
- Clarinet Concerto (1990–1991)
Chamber/Instrumental
- Quintet for Piano and Strings (1941)
- Introduzione e capriccio for violin and piano (1970)
- Divertimento Upsaliensis for wind quintet, string quintet and piano (1978)
- Sonata for Violin and Piano (1979)
- Concerto for 12 Cellos (1980–1981)
- De profundis for 14 brass instruments (4 horns, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, 2 tubas) (1980)
- Sonata for Cello and Piano (1982)
- Trio for piano, violin and cello (1982)
- Pavane for violin and piano (1983)
- String Quartet (1985)
- Opening Brass for 15 brass instruments (4 horns, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, euphonium, 2 tubas) (1988),
- Vivat academia (fanfare) for brass orchestra (4 horns, 3 trumpets, 3 trombones, tuba) or brass quintet (1989)
- Wind Quintet for flute, oboe, clarinet, horn and bassoon (1989)
Music for solo instrument
- Humoresque for piano (1935)
- Introduzione e Toccata for piano (1950)
- Preludium for piano (1955)
- Sonatina No. 1 (Sonatine in d) (1966)
- Notturno (Prelude) for piano (1967)
- Passacaglia for organ (1971)
- Marcia Funerale for organ (1976)
- Panorama for trombone (1976)
- Piano Sonata No. 1 (1978)
- Serenata elegiaco for violin (1979)
- Pavane e Toccata for piano (1983)
- Sonatina No. 2 “Pariisilainen” (The Parisian) for piano (1984)
- Preludium & Fughetta for piano (1986)
- Suite for solo Cello “Viimeinen saari” (The Last Island) (1986)
- Intermezzo for oboe (1987)
Film music
- Omena putoaa (1952)
- Valkoinen peura The White Reindeer (1952)
- Kaikkien naisten monni (1952)
- …ja Helena soittaa (1952)
- Yhden yön hinta (1952)
- Kultaa ja kunniaa (1953)
- Näkemiin Helena (1954)
- Muistojen kisakesä 1952 (1954)
- Rakkaus kahleissa (1959)
- Ratkaisun päivät (1956)
- Jokin ihmisessä (1956)
- The Stranger (1957)
- Ingen morgondag (1957)
- Verta käsissämme (1958)
- Asessorin naishuolet (1958)
- Äidittömät (1958)
- Pojat (1962)
- Preludes to Ecstasy (1962)
- Ett fat amontillado (1963)
Sources
- Englund, Einar: "I skuggan av Sibelius" Soderstrom & Co. Forlags Ab 1996
- Kimmo Korhonen: "Finnish Orchestral Music 2" Finnish Music Information Centre 1995
- White, John David [Ed]: "New Music of the Nordic Countries" Pendragon Press 2002
- Hillila, Ruth-Esther & Blanchard Hong, Barbara: "Historical dictionary of the music and musicians of Finland" Greenwood Press 1997