Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927)
composer, pianist, conductor.

Stenhammar wrote two symphonies: the first is a mainstream, rather Brucknerian piece, but, by the time he wrote the second, he had resolved to make his music more ‘Nordic’, taking as his models Sibelius and Nielsen; you can hear the impressive results below

Because he was kept busy as both concert pianist and conductor, his compositional output was comparatively small. In addition to the two symphonies, there are two piano concertos, an orchestral serenade (which is, perhaps, his best known work), two operas and several other vocal works. In terms of chamber music, it’s his six string quartets that draw most praise – they’ve described as the missing link between the masterworks of Brahms and Bartók.

Stenhammar:
String Quartet No.5
“Serenade”, in C

Allegro molto con spirito [00:00]
Ballata. Allegretto scherzando [05:19]
Scherzo. Allegro vivace [12:55]
Finale. Allegro molto [14:54]

Stenhammar:
Symphony No. 2 in g

00:00 – Allegro energico.
11:10 – Andante.
20:17 – Scherzo. Allegro, ma non troppo presto.
27:32 – Finale. Sostenuto-Allegro vivace

Score

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