It was in 1905, an entire decade prior to Wilhelm Stenhammar’s second
symphony, that Hugo Alfvén completed his third symphony. In this work
Alfvén, like many other Scandinavian composers, found the typical Nordic
tone of his music in the sunny south. Like Sibelius’ second symphony and
Stenhammar’s Serenade for Orchestra, this symphony is Swedish through and
through. In addition, it is pervaded by the longing for home repeatedly
felt by Alfvén during his years of wandering. He composed his Uppsala
Rhapsody in 1907 for the commemoration of the two hundredth anniversary of
the birth of the great botanist Carl von Linné (Linnaeus) held at the
University of Uppsala in May 1907. Like its counterpart by Johannes Brahms,
this work turned out to be an »Academic Festival Overture« including some
student songs. The Concert Suite from Alfvén’s ballet The Mountain King
offers a masterful wealth of color. His excellent knowledge of the art of
instrumentation was the product of his earlier activity as a violinist in
the Royal Court Orchestra, which also served as the Opera Orchestra.