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==Early life and education==
==Early life and education==
Between 1962 and 1970, Grahn studied music primarily with {{ill|Hans Eklund (composer)|sv|Hans Eklund (tonsättare)|lt=Hans Eklund}} at the {{ill|Stockholm City College|sv|Stockholms Borgarskola}} and subsequently at the [[Royal College of Music, Stockholm]].<ref name=Baker /> He earned degrees at the [[Stockholms Musikpedagogiska Institut|Stockholm Institute of Music Pedagogy]]<ref name=runeberg /> and after moving to America in 1972, the [[Catholic University of America]],<ref name=Baker /> and has also studied business administration, economics, and development at [[University of Uppsala|Uppsala]] and [[University of Lund|Lund]].<ref name=runeberg>[https://runeberg.org/authors/grahnulf.html Ulf Grahn], Nordic Authors, Project Runeberg, updated June 10, 2007, retrieved January 11, 2013.</ref><ref name=Society>[http://www.societyofcomposers.org/members/UlfGrahn/ Ulf Grahn] at Society of Composers, retrieved January 11, 2013.</ref>
Between 1962 and 1970, Grahn studied music primarily with {{ill|Hans Eklund (composer)|sv|Hans Eklund (tonsättare)|lt=Hans Eklund}} at the {{ill|Stockholm City College|sv|Stockholms Borgarskola}} and subsequently at the [[Royal College of Music, Stockholm]].He earned degrees at the [[Stockholms Musikpedagogiska Institut|Stockholm Institute of Music Pedagogy]]<ref name=runeberg /> and after moving to America in 1972, the [[Catholic University of America]], and has also studied business administration, economics, and development at [[University of Uppsala|Uppsala]] and [[University of Lund|Lund]].<ref name=runeberg>[https://runeberg.org/authors/grahnulf.html Ulf Grahn], Nordic Authors, Project Runeberg, updated June 10, 2007, retrieved January 11, 2013.</ref><ref name=Society>[http://www.societyofcomposers.org/members/UlfGrahn/ Ulf Grahn] at Society of Composers, retrieved January 11, 2013.</ref>


==Career==
==Career==
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==Works==
==Works==
Grahn's works include two symphonies, the second of which was commissioned by the [[Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra]], two ballets, an instrumental opera for wind quintet (commissioned for Mälarkvintetten), and numerous works for piano and chamber ensembles including the 1975 ''Concerto for Viola d'Amore and Ten Instruments'' commissioned by Joseph Ceo<ref>[[Harry Danks]], ''The Viola D'Amore'', 2nd ed. Halesowen, West Midlands: Stephen Bonner, 1979, {{OCLC|695930737}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=Iqtlg7bOolEC&dq=Ulf+Grahn&pg=PA122 p. 122].</ref> and the 1983 ''Sonata for Violin and Piano'' commissioned by the [[Library of Congress]].<ref name=runeberg/> Several of his works feature the [[marimba]].<ref name=runeberg/><ref name=bio>Stig Jacobsson, "Grahn, Ulf (1942)", Biografier, [http://www.mic.stim.se/avd/mic/prod/micv6.nsf/docsbycodename/soekresultat?opendocument&fraga=Ulf+GRAHN at Svensk Musik], updated by Grahn 2001, retrieved January 11, 2013 {{in lang|sv}}</ref> His music is modern but accessible to a general audience.<ref name=Baker/> A review in ''[[The New York Times]]'' described his 1982 ''Eldorado'', a commissioned setting of a poem by [[Edgar Allan Poe]], as "[having] caught the dreamy death-obsession of the text in a gamelan-textured instrumental context, the gamelan being evoked through piano preparations",<ref>John Rockwell, [https://www.nytimes.com/1983/02/04/arts/concert-washington-music-ensemble.html "Concert: Washington Music Ensemble"],''[[The New York Times]]'', February 4, 1983.</ref> and reviews in the ''[[Washington Post]]'' have described his ''Through the Passage of Time'' for [[Recorder (musical instrument)|recorder]] (also 1982) as "clever and acrobatic",<ref>Joan Reinthaler, [https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/74695582.html?dids=74695582:74695582&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jun+11%2C+1991&author=Joan+Reinthaler&pub=The+Washington+Post+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Capital+Composers&pqatl=google "Capital Composers"], ''[[The Washington Post]]'', June 11, 1991 (pay-per-view); [https://web.archive.org/web/20160312135451/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1069431.html Online]).</ref> his 1988 ''Celebration'' for solo marimba as "intricate and buoyant",<ref>Joseph McLellan, "[https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/621426111.html?dids=621426111:621426111&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Apr+21%2C+2004&author=&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=MUSIC&pqatl=google Music]", ''The Washington Post'', April 21, 2004.</ref> and his 1991 ''Three Short Pieces for String Quartet'', originally composed for piano, as "seem[ingly] so idiomatic for strings, with their shimmering, overlapping lines and delicate interplay, that it is hard to imagine a piano being able to make much sense of them",<ref>Joan Reinthaler, [https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/113189656.html?dids=113189656:113189656&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Apr+10%2C+2002&author=&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=Sunrise+Quartet+Shines+on+Local+Works&pqatl=google "Sunrise Quartet Shines on Local Works"], ''The Washington Post'', April 10, 2002 (pay-per-view); [https://web.archive.org/web/20160309142552/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-350979.html Online]).</ref> although his song cycle ''From Dusk to Dawn'' was described as "[having] some interesting things to say but did not stop when it had said them."<ref>Joseph McLellan, [https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/74744507.html?dids=74744507:74744507&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Oct+14%2C+1991&author=Joseph+McLellan&pub=The+Washington+Post+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=The+Forum%3A+With+Melody+Aforethought&pqatl=google "The Forum: With Melody Aforethought"], ''The Washington Post'', October 14, 1991 (pay-per-view); [https://web.archive.org/web/20160407104651/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1089927.html Online]).</ref>
Grahn's works include two symphonies, the second of which was commissioned by the [[Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra]], two ballets, an instrumental opera for wind quintet (commissioned for Mälarkvintetten), and numerous works for piano and chamber ensembles including the 1975 ''Concerto for Viola d'Amore and Ten Instruments'' commissioned by Joseph Ceo<ref>[[Harry Danks]], ''The Viola D'Amore'', 2nd ed. Halesowen, West Midlands: Stephen Bonner, 1979, {{OCLC|695930737}}, [https://books.google.com/books?id=Iqtlg7bOolEC&dq=Ulf+Grahn&pg=PA122 p. 122].</ref> and the 1983 ''Sonata for Violin and Piano'' commissioned by the [[Library of Congress]].<ref name=runeberg/> Several of his works feature the [[marimba]].<ref name=runeberg/><ref name=bio>Stig Jacobsson, "Grahn, Ulf (1942)", Biografier, [http://www.mic.stim.se/avd/mic/prod/micv6.nsf/docsbycodename/soekresultat?opendocument&fraga=Ulf+GRAHN at Svensk Musik], updated by Grahn 2001, retrieved January 11, 2013 {{in lang|sv}}</ref> His music is modern but accessible to a general audience.<ref name=Baker/> A review in ''[[The New York Times]]'' described his 1982 ''Eldorado'', a commissioned setting of a poem by [[Edgar Allan Poe]], as "[having] caught the dreamy death-obsession of the text in a gamelan-textured instrumental context, the gamelan being evoked through piano preparations",<ref>John Rockwell, [https://www.nytimes.com/1983/02/04/arts/concert-washington-music-ensemble.html "Concert: Washington Music Ensemble"],''[[The New York Times]]'', February 4, 1983.</ref> and reviews in the ''[[Washington Post]]'' have described his ''Through the Passage of Time'' for [[Recorder (musical instrument)|recorder]] (also 1982) as "clever and acrobatic",<ref>Joan Reinthaler, [https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/74695582.html?dids=74695582:74695582&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Jun+11%2C+1991&author=Joan+Reinthaler&pub=The+Washington+Post+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=Capital+Composers&pqatl=google "Capital Composers"], ''[[The Washington Post]]'', June 11, 1991 (pay-per-view); [https://web.archive.org/web/20160312135451/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1069431.html Online]).</ref> his 1988 ''Celebration'' for solo marimba as "intricate and buoyant",<ref>Joseph McLellan, "[https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/621426111.html?dids=621426111:621426111&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Apr+21%2C+2004&author=&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=MUSIC&pqatl=google Music]", ''The Washington Post'', April 21, 2004.</ref> and his 1991 ''Three Short Pieces for String Quartet'', originally composed for piano, as "seem[ingly] so idiomatic for strings, with their shimmering, overlapping lines and delicate interplay, that it is hard to imagine a piano being able to make much sense of them",<ref>Joan Reinthaler, [https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/113189656.html?dids=113189656:113189656&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Apr+10%2C+2002&author=&pub=The+Washington+Post&desc=Sunrise+Quartet+Shines+on+Local+Works&pqatl=google "Sunrise Quartet Shines on Local Works"], ''The Washington Post'', April 10, 2002 (pay-per-view); [https://web.archive.org/web/20160309142552/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-350979.html Online]).</ref> although his song cycle ''From Dusk to Dawn'' was described as "[having] some interesting things to say but did not stop when it had said them."<ref>Joseph McLellan, [https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/washingtonpost/access/74744507.html?dids=74744507:74744507&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Oct+14%2C+1991&author=Joseph+McLellan&pub=The+Washington+Post+%28pre-1997+Fulltext%29&desc=The+Forum%3A+With+Melody+Aforethought&pqatl=google "The Forum: With Melody Aforethought"], ''The Washington Post'', October 14, 1991 (pay-per-view); [https://web.archive.org/web/20160407104651/https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-1089927.html Online]).</ref>
==Discography==
*''Quadrants'' Release Date: September 25, 2012 Catalog Number: NV5883 [[Navona Records]]<ref>https://www.navonarecords.com/catalog/nv5883/</ref>


==Personal==
==Personal==

Revision as of 15:19, 26 January 2024

Ulf Grahn (January 17, 1942 - January 25, 2023), [1] [2] [3] is a Swedish composer born in Solna and lived the majority of his life in the United States specifically in the Washington, D.C. area.[4]

Early life and education

Between 1962 and 1970, Grahn studied music primarily with Hans Eklund at the Stockholm City College [sv] and subsequently at the Royal College of Music, Stockholm.He earned degrees at the Stockholm Institute of Music Pedagogy[5] and after moving to America in 1972, the Catholic University of America, and has also studied business administration, economics, and development at Uppsala and Lund.[5][6]

Career

In 1974 Grahn and his wife, the pianist Barbro Dahlman, founded the Contemporary Music Forum, which presents performances of works by living European and American composers, and he was its program director until 1984.[7] Since 1985, he has operated the music publisher Edition NGLANI.[8] In 1988–89, he was artistic and managing director of the Lake Siljan Music Festival in Sweden.[7][8]

He taught at music schools in Stockholm and Lidingö and in the US at Catholic University of America, at Northern Virginia Community College and from 1983 to 1987 at George Washington University.[7][9] As of 2001, he teaches Swedish language and culture at the Foreign Service Institute.[9]

Works

Grahn's works include two symphonies, the second of which was commissioned by the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, two ballets, an instrumental opera for wind quintet (commissioned for Mälarkvintetten), and numerous works for piano and chamber ensembles including the 1975 Concerto for Viola d'Amore and Ten Instruments commissioned by Joseph Ceo[10] and the 1983 Sonata for Violin and Piano commissioned by the Library of Congress.[5] Several of his works feature the marimba.[5][9] His music is modern but accessible to a general audience.[7] A review in The New York Times described his 1982 Eldorado, a commissioned setting of a poem by Edgar Allan Poe, as "[having] caught the dreamy death-obsession of the text in a gamelan-textured instrumental context, the gamelan being evoked through piano preparations",[11] and reviews in the Washington Post have described his Through the Passage of Time for recorder (also 1982) as "clever and acrobatic",[12] his 1988 Celebration for solo marimba as "intricate and buoyant",[13] and his 1991 Three Short Pieces for String Quartet, originally composed for piano, as "seem[ingly] so idiomatic for strings, with their shimmering, overlapping lines and delicate interplay, that it is hard to imagine a piano being able to make much sense of them",[14] although his song cycle From Dusk to Dawn was described as "[having] some interesting things to say but did not stop when it had said them."[15]

Discography

Personal

Grahn was hospitalized for cancer treatment in 1986 and worked on a commissioned work there; he recovered the following year.[9]

Articles

References

  1. ^ https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/washingtonpost/name/ulf-grahn-obituary?id=51493446 Ulf Grahn Obituary on Legacy.com
  2. ^ Laura Kuhn and Dennis McIntire, Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, January 1, 2001,
  3. ^ Online)
  4. ^ Working for a Song By Meryle Secrest, February 25, 1979 Washington Post
  5. ^ a b c d Ulf Grahn, Nordic Authors, Project Runeberg, updated June 10, 2007, retrieved January 11, 2013.
  6. ^ Ulf Grahn at Society of Composers, retrieved January 11, 2013.
  7. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference Baker was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ a b "Grahn, Ulf (Ake Wilhelm)", International Who's Who in Classical Music 2003, 19th ed. London/New York: Europa, 2003, ISBN 9781857431742, p. 294.
  9. ^ a b c d Stig Jacobsson, "Grahn, Ulf (1942)", Biografier, at Svensk Musik, updated by Grahn 2001, retrieved January 11, 2013 (in Swedish)
  10. ^ Harry Danks, The Viola D'Amore, 2nd ed. Halesowen, West Midlands: Stephen Bonner, 1979, OCLC 695930737, p. 122.
  11. ^ John Rockwell, "Concert: Washington Music Ensemble",The New York Times, February 4, 1983.
  12. ^ Joan Reinthaler, "Capital Composers", The Washington Post, June 11, 1991 (pay-per-view); Online).
  13. ^ Joseph McLellan, "Music", The Washington Post, April 21, 2004.
  14. ^ Joan Reinthaler, "Sunrise Quartet Shines on Local Works", The Washington Post, April 10, 2002 (pay-per-view); Online).
  15. ^ Joseph McLellan, "The Forum: With Melody Aforethought", The Washington Post, October 14, 1991 (pay-per-view); Online).
  16. ^ https://www.navonarecords.com/catalog/nv5883/
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