Sigurd Islandsmoen (August 27, 1881 – July 1, 1964) was a
Norwegian composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and def ...
. Sigurd Islandsmoen made significant contributions to the music of the
Church of Norway
The Church of Norway (, , , ) is an Lutheranism, evangelical Lutheran denomination of Protestant Christianity and by far the largest Christian church in Norway. Christianity became the state religion of Norway around 1020, and was established a ...
. In all he wrote some 70 opuses, among these five feature-length works for orchestra, choir and soloists. He is perhaps best known for his composition ''Requiem'' written between 1935 and 1936 and first premiered in 1943.
Background
Sigurd Islandsmoen was born in
Bagn
Bagn is the administrative centre of Sør-Aurdal Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The village is located in the Begnadalen valley, about to the southeast of the town of Fagernes. The river Begna runs through the village on its way thr ...
(
Sør-Aurdal Municipality
Sør-Aurdal is a municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Valdres. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Bagn. Other villages in the municipality include Begna, Hedalen, ...
), in
Oppland
Oppland is a former county in Norway which existed from 1781 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020. The old Oppland county bordered the counties of Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal, Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Akershus, Oslo and Hedmark. The ...
county, Norway. He grew up on the family farm, the youngest of nine siblings. He was the brother of Norwegian educator and politician,
Olaus Islandsmoen. He studied at the music academy of Oslo, later as well in
Leipzig
Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...
, where amongst others
Max Reger
Johann Baptist Joseph Maximilian Reger (19 March 187311 May 1916) was a German composer, pianist, organist, conductor, and academic teacher. He worked as a concert pianist, a musical director at the Paulinerkirche, Leipzig, Leipzig University Chu ...
was his teacher. The time in Leipzig is believed to have had a great influence on his musical development, and especially the organist
Karl Straube
Montgomery Rufus Karl Siegfried Straube (6 January 1873 – 27 April 1950) was a German church musician, organist, and choral conductor, famous above all for championing the abundant organ music of Max Reger.
Career
Born in Berlin, Straube stu ...
(1873–1950) and conductor
Arthur Nikisch
Arthur Nikisch (12 October 185523 January 1922) was a Hungary, Hungarian conducting, conductor who performed internationally, holding posts in Boston, London, Leipzig and—most importantly—Berlin. He was considered an outstanding interpreter ...
(1855–1922).
He took an exam at
Elverum
Elverum () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Elverum ( ...
Teacher Academy in 1904 and worked as a teacher from 1904 to 1916. First he worked as a teacher and organist for some years in his home village of Bagn, and later he worked for the six years as music teacher in
Gjøvik
Gjøvik () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Gjøvik (town), town of Gjøvik. Some of the villages in Gjøvik include Biri, Norway, Biri, Bybrua, ...
. From 1916 to 1961 he was church organist in
Moss
Mosses are small, non-vascular plant, non-vascular flowerless plants in the taxonomic phylum, division Bryophyta (, ) ''sensu stricto''. Bryophyta (''sensu lato'', Wilhelm Philippe Schimper, Schimp. 1879) may also refer to the parent group bryo ...
. Through his position as organist at Moss, he made a great effort for the city's musical life. He initiated the formation of Moss Orchestra Association in 1924 and served as conductor for a long series of years. He was also the leader of several local choir and bands as well.
Career
He composed numerous oratorios and orchestral works, chamber music, piano, organ and choir works. Perhaps his most popular work is the song ''Det lysnet i skogen'' with lyrics by
Jørgen Moe
Jørgen Engebretsen Moe (22 April 1813–27 March 1882) was a Norwegian folklorist, bishop, poet, and author. He is best known for the '' Norske Folkeeventyr'', a collection of Norwegian folk tales which he edited in collaboration with Pe ...
. Other notable pieces include ''Requiem'' (premiered in 1943), an opera – ''Gudrun Laugar'', two symphonies, oratorios, ''Israel i fangenskap'' (premiered in 1931) and ''Heimat frå Babel'' (first performed in 1934), the choral work ''
Missa solemnis
is Latin for Solemn Mass.[Mass]
, ''Catholic Encyclopedia''. N.p., Appleton, 1910. 797. and is a genre of < ...
'' (premiered in 1954), two symphonies, ''Norsk Ouvertyre'' and other orchestral works, chamber music, piano and organ works and a number of choral works.
''Sigurd Islandsmoen / utdypning'' (Store norske leksikon)
/ref>
Islandsmoen was knighted by First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav and from 1952 received a Government artist salary. Bagn Bygdesamling, a small museum on the home farm at Sør-Aurdal, created by Islandsmoen's brother Olaus, contains an exhibition of the composer's work.
A teacher at Oslo Conservatory of Music
The Oslo Conservatory of Music () was a music school in Oslo, Norway.
The school was established by Ludvig Mathias Lindeman and his son Peter Brynie Lindeman in 1883 in Christiania (as Oslo was then called) and was named the Organist School () ...
, his students include Bjørn Fongaard.
Selected works
* ''Norsk Ouvertyre'', (1913)
* ''Israel i fangenskap'', (1931)
* ''Heimatt frå Babel'', (1934)
* ''Requiem'', (1943)
* ''Missa Solemnis'', (1954)
* ''Missa Nidrosiense'', (1963)
* ''Gudrun Laugar'', (1964)
References
External links
Islandsmoen's ''Requiem''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Islandsmoen, Sigurd
1881 births
1964 deaths
20th-century Norwegian classical composers
Norwegian classical organists
Norwegian male classical organists
People from Sør-Aurdal
Musicians from Moss, Norway
Norwegian male classical composers
Academic staff of the Oslo Conservatory of Music
20th-century Norwegian organists
20th-century Norwegian male musicians