Carl Wilhelm Eugen Stenhammar | Composers

Carl Wilhelm Eugen Stenhammar was a Swedish composer, pianist and conductor.
Stenhammar studied piano, organ and composition in Stockholm from 1887 to 1892, making his debut as a pianist in the spring of 1892. From the autumn of the same year, he continued his piano studies in Berlin and graduated there the following year. From that time on, Stenhammar worked internationally as a concert pianist. He often performed in chamber music formations as a duo partner of violinist Tor Aulin or with his quartet. In October 1897, he made his first public appearance as a conductor, an activity he pursued intensively throughout his life, in addition to being a composer. In 1900 and 1901, Stenhammar worked as Kapellmeister at the Royal Opera in Stockholm before becoming chief conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, which had been founded two years earlier. He held this position until 1922. In 1916, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Gothenburg. From 1923 to 1925, he was again Kapellmeister at the Royal Opera in Stockholm. During his lifetime, Stenhammar was a highly respected figure in the Scandinavian music scene and was friends with many well-known musician colleagues.