Eric Sahlström (1912–1986 CE) was a Swedish player of the

nyckelharpa A nyckelharpa (, "keyed fiddle", or literally "key harp", plural ) is the national musical instrument of Sweden. It is a string instrument or chordophone. Its keys are attached to tangents which, when a key is depressed, serve as frets to chang ...

, and '' riksspelman'' awardee from Tobo in northern

Uppland Uppland () is a historical province or ' on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. On the small uninhab ...

, Sweden. Sahlström won great respect for his musicianship in an era when folk music was not yet an established art form. He was hired by Bo Nilson in 1962 to play in a new work at the

Venice Biennale The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...

. In 1968 he received the Swedish Local Heritage Federation's medal from

Gustaf VI Adolf Gustaf VI Adolf (Oscar Fredrik Wilhelm Olaf Gustaf Adolf; 11 November 1882 – 15 September 1973) was King of Sweden from 29 October 1950 until his death in 1973. He was the eldest son of Gustaf V and his wife, Victoria of Baden. Before Gustaf Ado ...

and the same year the

Royal Swedish Academy of Music The Royal Swedish Academy of Music ( sv, Kungliga Musikaliska Akademien), founded in 1771 by King Gustav III, is one of the Royal Academies in Sweden. At the time of its foundation, only one of its co-founder was a professional musician, Ferdin ...

's ''Medaljen för tonkonstens främjande'' ("Medal for Music Promotion"). He was nominated as a music professor at the

Royal College of Music, Stockholm The Royal College of Music, Stockholm ( sv, Kungliga Musikhögskolan i Stockholm) is the oldest institution of higher education in music in Sweden, founded in 1771 as the conservatory of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. The institution was mad ...

. In 1976 he was recognised for "artistic quality and importance for Swedish culture", as the first musician to receive that award. Eric Sahlström is one of those who most contributed most to the renaissance of the ''nyckelharpa'' ("key fiddle") in modern times. The instrument at that point had some small popularity amongst a handful of musicians in Uppland, but Sahlström as a design engineer and luthier further developed the instrument, including refining the chromatic nyckelharpa which can play any key. He also composed a large number of folk songs. Among the most famous include the waltz ''Spelmansglädje'' ("Fiddler Joy") and the ''

polska Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

''s ''Stormyren'' and ''Hardrevet''. A bronze statue of Sahlström made by Ingvar Jörpeland in 1992 was installed by the church of Tegelsmora his burial-ground. The Eric Sahlström Institute in Tobo is named after Sahlström.

External links

Eric Sahlströms Memorial Fund

Eric Sahlström Institute
, (in English)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sahlstrom, Eric 1912 births 1986 deaths Nyckelharpa players Swedish folk musicians Riksspelmän