Edition: VI
Bio/Studies
Daniel Fjellström (b. 1983) is a swedish composer, arranger and orchestrator. He studied arranging and composition at the Malmö Academy of Music and the Royal College of Music in London.
Fjellström’s music has been performed by ensembles such as the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Malmö Symphony Orchestra, Eric Ericsson’s Chamber Choir, BBC Singers, Dalasinfoniettan, Jönköping Sinfonietta, Malmö Opera, Wermland Opera Orchestra and others.
In 2013 his first opera, “Tusen och en natt” was premiered at Malmö Opera. The work, with lyrics by Vanja Hamidi Isacson was commissioned by Operaverkstan at Malmö Opera and was a success, hailed by audiences and critics. “Tusen och en natt” will be restaged at Malmö Opera in December 2015.
Other music for stage, television and film include the multilingual performance ”Parizad” (Teater JaLaDa, Malmö, 2014),”A Christmas Carol” (Småland’s Musik & Teater, 2011), “Tyskungen/The hidden child” (SVT, SF cinema, 2013) and a number of documentaries and short films including “Vi kallar dem diamanter” by Ebba Holmquist which premiered at the Gothenburg International Film Festival in 2011.
In 2012, Fjellström received first prize in Uppsala Composition Competition with ”Quiet arcs/Pulsating surfaces” for orchestra. The piece was premiered by the Uppsala Chamber Orchestra on may 10, 2012 in Uppsala Concert & Congress Hall and has since been performed numerous times in Sweden and abroad. Other awards and honors include fellowships from the Royal Academy of Music, the Crafoord Foundation and the City of Malmö scholarship for artistic development.
Currently, Fjellström is composing his second opera; “Det går an”, based on a novel by Carl Jonas Love Almqvist and with libretto by Maria Sundqvist. The work is a commission from the Foundation of Läckö slott and Operaverkstan, Malmö Opera.
Fjellström is a member of the Swedish Performing Rights Society (STIM), the Swedish Artists’ and Musicians’ Interest Organization (SAMI) and an elected member of the Society of Swedish Composers (FST).
Career
2007-2011
Studies in arranging and composition at the Malmö Academy of Music, Sweden and the Royal College of Music, London, United Kingdom.
2003-2006
Studies in cello at the Malmö Academy of Music, Sweden.
2002-2003
Kapellsberg Music School, Härnösand, Sweden. Studies in cello.
1999-2002
Science program, Härnösand Gymnasium.
Selected grants
2015 Sten Broman composer’s award
2014 City of Malmö scholarship for artistic development
2012 Rosenborg-Gehrmans foundation
2011 Royal Academy of Music
2010 Crafoord Foundation
2010 Anders Sandrew Foundation
2008 Helge Ax: son Johnson Foundation
Other
1st prize in the Uppsala Composition Competition with the piece “Quiet arcs / Pulsating surfaces” for orchestra.
Notes on the Musma Composition
XV: Resurrection My piece is inspired by the Via Crucis fifteenth station: “The Resurrection”, which is not represented in Liszt’s music. And more specifically Matthias Grünewald’s painting of the resurrection depicted on the Isenheim Altarpiece in 1512. At first glance, the panel shows the twisted, bloody figure of Jesus on the cross, flanked on the left side by his mother Mary who is supported by the apostle John. But when the wings of the altarpiece are opened, three panels have appeared, and unlike the outer ones, these inner panels are suffused with light. The drama of this light is especially obvious against the dark night sky in the background of the resurrection scene. In the same way as light is a powerful symbol of Grünewald’s depiction, light is a strong feature of my music, where parameters such as pitch, harmony and dynamics become symbols of hope, faith and strength.
