Northrop Music Presents Swedish Radio Choir, 2/26

Northrop Music at the University of Minnesota presents the thirty-two singer Swedish Radio Choir as they bring their world-renowned a capella music and awe-inspiring sound to the transplanted Scandinavian heart of the U.S. The choral group's expertise spans a wide range of music, including baroque, gospel, folk, and commissioned works, drawing heavily upon composers from their home country as well as the celebrated maestros of the past. The tour is led by conductor Ragnar Bohlin, a Stockholm native who also serves as choral director for the San Francisco Symphony.

The group's humble roots reach back as far as 1944 and before, but its moving music and blending of master voices were brought out of Sweden's borders and into world recognition in 1952 when Eric Ericson was named the principle conductor. Ericson revitalized the group and broadened the material, serving as conductor for thirty-two years. He has since returned as a guest conductor and was named Conductor Emeritus in 2007.

Founded in 1925, the world took note of the Swedish Radio Choir in 1952 when Ericson transformed the choir into an ensemble capable of performing advanced choral repertoire - works by such composers as Richard Strauss and Max Reger as well as music of its own day. Arthur Honegger heard his own choral music sung for the first time the way he had imagined it, and began spreading word that this choir could sing practically anything. The Ericson sound became legendary. Many composers found the Swedish Radio Choir to be the ideal instrument for their music: composers such as Ingvar Lidholm, Sven-Erik Bäck and Lars Edlund; György Ligeti and Krzysztof Penderecki. The works they wrote specifically for this choir count among the classics of choral repertoire in Sweden and internationally. Eric Ericson retired after more than thirty years' service, but he has been welcomed back many times as Conductor Emeritus.

The choir is well represented on CD and DVD with performances of both a cappella and major symphonic works on such labels as Deutsche Grammophon, EMI, SONY and Virgin Classics. The Swedish Radio Choir's vision is to deploy its exceptional sonic range to place its own special imprint on the a cappella and symphonic choral repertoires. It is an ensemble in which each individual voice finds its place in a unified artistic expression.

The choir's home lies in the Swedish concert hall Berwaldhallen in Stockholm. Berwaldhallen houses two of the country's most versatile and significant musical groups, the Swedish Radio Choir and Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. Together, the two groups bring the beloved Swedish heritage and composers to the world's doorstep, touring internationally.

For additional information, visit http://northrop.umn.edu/tickets.