Thanks to San Francisco Symphony Chorus Director Ragnar Bohlin, audiences here became somewhat familiar with the previously little-known Wilhelm Stenhammar and Hugo Alfven — big names in Sweden. Now that the once-famous but now (to Americans) rather obscure painter Anders Zorn is reigning at the Legion of Honor, Bohlin is going all out to celebrate Konungariket Sverige, the Kingdom of Sweden.
He will conduct the 16-member Voices of Sweden, at 1 p.m. on Jan. 25, at the Legion, part of an all-day program of lectures and discussions about Zorn. On the program: Lindholm, Stenhammar, and the latter's good friend, Zorn himself. Was the "unknown painter" also an unknown composer? Not really, Bohlin says, he just wrote a few short drinking songs, one of which will have its West Coast (or North American?) premiere at this concert.
Never having heard of Voices of Sweden, I told Bohlin that I suspect it may be an ad hoc and perhaps a one-time only manifestation of Cappella SF, his chamber choir that's still in the state of becoming.
"It is indeed singers from my new group, but since this happens before our official debut, we go under this name," Bohlin replied, adding that the event is in response to a request from the Swedish Consulate. As to Zorn as a composer:
Zorn was not really a composer, this is only a simple drinking tune, harmonized by someone else, but accredited to Zorn. He was, however, a driving force behind the resurrection of the old fiddler/folk music tradition in Sweden, and was for several years on the jury of an important folk music competition at the time.