Anders Johan Ture Rangström (30 November 1884 – 11 May 1947) belonged to a new generation of

Swedish composers Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

who, in the first decade of the 20th century, introduced

modernism Modernism is both a philosophical and arts movement that arose from broad transformations in Western society during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The movement reflected a desire for the creation of new forms of art, philosophy, an ...

to their compositions. In addition to composing, Rangström was also a musical

critic A critic is a person who communicates an assessment and an opinion of various forms of creative works such as art, literature, music, cinema, theater, fashion, architecture, and food. Critics may also take as their subject social or gover ...

and conductor.

Biography

Rangström was born in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the capital and largest city of Sweden as well as the largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people live in the municipality, with 1.6 million in the urban area, and 2.4 million in the metropo ...

, where in his late teens he started to write songs. His music teacher suggested that he should "vary the harmonies a bit more, make it a bit wilder!" He followed this advice and soon gained the nickname among his colleagues of " Sturm-und-Drangström".Jacobsson, Stig (1996). "Ture Rangström – Symphony No. 2, Intermezzo drammatico". cpo 999 368-2 (CD Booklet): 10–14. He travelled to Berlin where he studied under

Hans Pfitzner Hans Erich Pfitzner (5 May 1869 – 22 May 1949) was a German composer, conductor and polemicist who was a self-described anti-modernist. His best known work is the post-Romantic opera ''Palestrina'' (1917), loosely based on the life of the ...

for a while in 1905–6, and also studied singing with the

Wagnerian Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

Julius Hey, with whom he later went to Munich for further studies. His compositions at this time were chiefly for voice and piano. Between 1907 and 1922 he taught singing and from 1922 to 1925 he was principal conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. He founded the Swedish Society of Composers in 1924, and he was employed to promote the works of the

Royal Swedish Opera Royal Swedish Opera ( sv, Kungliga Operan) is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden. Location and environment The building is located in the center of Sweden's capital Stockholm in the borough of Norrmalm, on the eastern sid ...

from 1931 to 1936. After this he worked

freelance ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance ...

and spent the summers on the island of Törnsholmen which he had been given by the people of Sweden who raised the money to celebrate his fiftieth birthday. Rangström died at his home in Stockholm after a long illness caused by a throat disease; his funeral was held at Stockholm's Maria Magdalena Church and he is buried in the churchyard at Gryt,

Valdemarsvik Municipality Valdemarsvik Municipality (''Valdemarsviks kommun'') is a municipality in Östergötland County in southeast Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Valdemarsvik. Valdemarsvik was originally a market town (''köping'') under the city of S� ...

Östergötland County Östergötland County ( sv, Östergötlands län) is a county or ''län'' in southeastern Sweden. It has land borders with the counties of Kalmar to the southeast, Jönköping to the southwest, Örebro to the northwest, and Södermanland to t ...

, southeast Sweden. He was grandfather of a playwright, also named Ture Rangström (born in 1944) the artistic director of

Strindbergs Intima Teater Strindberg's Intimate Theater ( sv, Strindbergs Intima Teater or ''Intima teatern''), is a theatre stage in Stockholm, Sweden. History It was founded and managed by the famous Swedish playwright August Strindberg and the young actor August Falck ...

(since its re-opening in 2003), and uncle of author

Lars Gyllensten Lars Johan Wictor Gyllensten (12 November 1921 – 25 May 2006) was a Swedish author and physician, and a member of the Swedish Academy. Gyllensten was born and grew up in a middle-class family in Stockholm, son of Carl Gyllensten and Ingrid Ra ...

Works

Many of his early works took the form of

symphonic poem A symphonic poem or tone poem is a piece of orchestral music, usually in a single continuous movement, which illustrates or evokes the content of a poem, short story, novel, painting, landscape, or other (non-musical) source. The German term ''T ...

s, including ''Dityramb'' (Dithyramb) (1909), ''Ett midsommarstycke'' (A midsummer piece) and ''En höstsång'' (An autumn song). Following the success of these poems, Rangström began work on his

symphonies A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning co ...

, of which there are four. The first, produced in 1914, is dedicated to the memory of

Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

– ''August Strindberg in memoriam''; the second, from 1919, is entitled ''Mitt land'' (My country); the third from 1929, ''Sång under stjärnorna'' (Song under the stars), and the fourth from 1936, ''Invocatio'', for orchestra and organ. He composed three

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libr ...

s, entitled ''Kronbruden'' (The Crown Bride), based on a play by Strindberg, which was first performed in 1915, ''Medeltida'' (Medieval), published in 1921, and ''Gilgamesj'', based on the Mesopotamian ''

Epic of Gilgamesh The ''Epic of Gilgamesh'' () is an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, and is regarded as the earliest surviving notable literature and the second oldest religious text, after the Pyramid Texts. The literary history of Gilgamesh begins with ...

'', written during the last years of his life. The orchestration of ''Gilgamesj'' was completed by the composer

John Fernström John Fernström (6 December 1897 – 19 October 1961) was a Swedish composer. Fernström was born in Yichang, China, where he also spent most part of the first ten years of his life at the mission his father directed, except for a couple of year ...

, and it was premièred in November 1952 at the

with Erik Saedén in the title role and Herbert Sandberg conducting. Rangström also wrote almost 300 songs and orchestrated about 60 of them.

Orchestral

* ''Dithyramb'', symphonic poem, 1909 (revised by Kurt Atterberg, 1948) * ''Ett midsommarstycke,'' symphonic poem, 1910 * ''En höstsång'', symphonic poem, 1911 * ''Havet sjunger,'' symphonic poem, 1913 * Symphony no. 1 in C-sharp minor, ''

August Strindberg Johan August Strindberg (, ; 22 January 184914 May 1912) was a Swedish playwright, novelist, poet, essayist and painter.Lane (1998), 1040. A prolific writer who often drew directly on his personal experience, Strindberg wrote more than sixty p ...

in memoriam,'' 1914 * ''Intermezzo drammatico'', suite, 1916–18 * ''Divertimento elegiaco'', suite for string orchestra, 1918 * Två melodier, clarinet and strings, 1919 * Symphony no. 2 in D minor, ''Mitt land'', 1919 * ''Två svenska folkmelodier'', 1928 * Symphony no. 3 in D flat ''Sång under stjärnorna'', 1929 * Partita for violin and orchestra in B minor, 1933 * Symphony no. 4 in D minor ''Invocatio'', 1935 * Ballade for piano and orchestra, 1937 * ''Vauxhall'', suite 1937 * ''Staden spelar'', divertissement, 1940

Chamber music

* String quartet in G minor, ''Ein Nachtstück in ETA Hoffmanns Manier,'' 1909 (rev. Edvin Kallstenius and Kurt Atterberg 1948) * ''Suite in modo antico,'' violin and piano, 1912 * ''Suite in modo barocco,'' violin and piano, 1920–22

Piano

* Fyra preludier, 1910–13 * ''Mälarlegender,'' 1919 * ''Sommarskyar,'' 1916–20 * ''Improvisata,'' 1927 * Sonatin, 1937 * ''Spelmansvår,'' suite, 1943

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rangstrom, Ture 1884 births 1947 deaths 20th-century Swedish male musicians 20th-century Swedish musicians Male opera composers Modernist composers Musicians from Stockholm Swedish classical composers Swedish male classical composers Swedish opera composers