Adolf Wiklund

Who was Adolf Wiklund?

Adolf Wiklund was a Swedish composer and conductor. His father was an organist. After graduating from the Royal College of Music, Stockholm as an organist and music teacher, Wiklund was awarded scholarships to study piano in Sweden and then in Paris. His debut as a piano soloist came in 1902 playing his own Konsertstycke in C major, Op 1.

After 1911 he worked mainly as a conductor. He conducted the Swedish Royal Orchestra from 1911 to 1924, he was director of the Royal Swedish Opera in 1923, and he served as principal conductor of the Stockholm Concert Society until 1938.

Wiklund's compositions are Romantic and nationalistic in style. His later works show the influence of Impressionism. He was not a prolific composer, but his works have been important to Swedish music. His output includes two piano concertos, a symphonic poem Sommarnatt och soluppgång, a symphony, and a violin sonata.