Aulin: Master Olof, Swedish Dances

WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, Willén, Niklas

CPO 777775

Tor Aulin was primarily a violin virtuoso and the first violinist of a world-famous string quartet. He had received solid training from the acclaimed violinist Emil Sauret in Berlin and during the 1890s was regarded as Scandinavia's most important violin soloist. He was on close friendly terms with Henri Marteau, Edvard Grieg, and Wilhelm Stenhammar, and the outstanding pianist Stenhammar often served as his accompanist.

Aulin also gained renown as a composer. His Violin Concerto No. 3, for example, was one of the works in Marteau's standard repertoire. His personal dealings with August Strindberg were remarkable. Apart from Aulin, Ture Rangström was the only composer on friendly terms with the eccentric dramatist. He alone gave the peace-loving Aulin such a kid-glove treatment. Strindberg bombarded him with suggestions for compositions and wanted him to transform his dramas into operas. In the end, however, these ideas did not produce any concrete results. Aulin nevertheless wrote a wonderful piece of incidental music for Mäster Olof, and Peterson-Berger characterized this work as follows: »Everything is maintained in a simple, euphonious Swedish style with quiet allusions to the German Renaissance as we know it, for instance, from the Meistersinger.«

Works:

• Aulin, T: Dances from Gotland
• Aulin, T: Master Olof, Op. 22
• Aulin, T: Swedish Dances

CD x 1

CPO

1/16/13

761203777525