Mats Ulf Stefan Björlin (21 May 1933 – 23 October 1993) was a
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
composer
A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music.
Etymology and Defi ...
and
conductor
Conductor or conduction may refer to:
Music
* Conductor (music), a person who leads a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra.
* ''Conductor'' (album), an album by indie rock band The Comas
* Conduction, a type of structured free improvisation ...
.
Bjorlin was known for being one of the most active opera composers in the 20th century.
Björlin was born in
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
in 1933. He studied music with conductor
Igor Markevitch in
Salzburg, Austria at age 19 and later continued his studies at the
Conservatoire de Paris, with teacher
Nadia Boulanger. After completing his military service, he worked at the
Royal Swedish Opera
Royal Swedish Opera ( sv, Kungliga Operan) is an opera and ballet company based in Stockholm, Sweden.
Location and environment
The building is located in the center of Sweden's capital Stockholm in the borough of Norrmalm, on the eastern side ...
in Stockholm and at the Malmö College of Music. From 1962, he was employed as musical producer at
Sveriges Radio
Sveriges Radio AB (, "Sweden's Radio") is Sweden's national publicly funded radio broadcaster. Sveriges Radio is a public limited company, owned by an independent foundation, previously funded through a licensing fee, the level of which is d ...
and wrote music for several movies and television productions, including the series of films and TV series about the children on the island
Saltkråkan (Seacrow Island), based on
Astrid Lindgren
Astrid Anna Emilia Lindgren (; ; 14 November 1907 – 28 January 2002) was a Swedish writer of fiction and screenplays. She is best known for several children's book series, featuring Pippi Longstocking, Emil of Lönneberga, Karlsson-on- ...
's scripts.
He also worked as music director for many years under
Ingmar Bergman
Ernst Ingmar Bergman (14 July 1918 – 30 July 2007) was a Swedish film director, screenwriter, Film producer, producer and playwright. Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential filmmakers of all time, his films are known ...
at the
Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm. Bjorlin came to the United States in 1977.
He served as guest conductor for the London Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra.
He worked with
Evert Taube, his neighbor from a very young age. Later, together with
Sven-Bertil Taube
Sven-Bertil Gunnar Evert Taube (24 November 1934 – 11 November 2022) was a Swedish singer and actor. Internationally, he was perhaps better known for his acting career. Taube played Henrik Vanger in the film ''The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo'' ...
, he also produced a number of recordings of songs by
Carl Michael Bellman,
Evert Taube and
Ulf Peder Olrog
Ulf Peder Olrog (27 February 1919 – 13 February 1972) was a Swedish folklorist, lecturer, composer, songwriter, and radio personality.
He was born in Stockholm to Thorvald Olrog and Hervor Jeanna Amalia Andrén.
He studied at the Universi ...
. He conducted several recordings of orchestral music by fellow Swedes
Johan Helmich Roman
Johan Helmich Roman (26 October 1694 – 20 November 1758) was a Swedish Baroque composer. He has been called "the father of Swedish music" or "the Swedish George Frideric Handel, Handel." He was the leader of Swedish Opera through most of Swedish ...
and
Franz Berwald.
During the last years before his death, he worked in Florida mostly, where he was conductor of the Greater Palm Beach Symphony (since 1987) and the
Florida Philharmonic Orchestra.
He had composed important work such as the "Musical Portrait of Raoul Wallenberg" in the years before his passing and several operas. He was known to be the most active opera composer in the world in the 20th century.
In his days he recorded several albums for the
EMI label. He died in
Palm Beach, Florida
Palm Beach is an incorporated town in Palm Beach County, Florida. Located on a barrier island in east-central Palm Beach County, the town is separated from several nearby cities including West Palm Beach and Lake Worth Beach by the Intracoas ...
at the age of 60. The cause was
leukemia.
Björlin received among other prizes the Fritz Gustaf Grafström Prize in 1961 and shared the Evert Taube Prize with Sven-Bertil Taube in 1975. He received the Swedish Music Achievement prize, In 1980, he received the 'Golden key' to the city of Newport, Rhode Island for his musical achievements and for bringing culture to their town. The 7th (?) of September was declared 'Maestro Ulf Bjorlin Day' by the Mayor of Newport.
He is the father of actress
Nadia Bjorlin
Nadia Alexandra Bjorlin (born August 2, 1980) is an American actress, singer, and model.
Early life
Bjorlin was born on August 2, 1980 in Newport, Rhode Island. She is the second eldest child of Swedish people, Swedish composer and conductor Ulf ...
and musicians Ulf Bjorlin Jr., and Jean-Paul Bjorlin. Björlin also has two other sons, Henrik Björlin and Fredrik Björlin.
At the time of his passing, it was noted that he was survived by his wife, Fary; three daughters: Nadia, of Palm Beach, Katja Salen of Stockholm, and Kamilla Pariser of Marblehead, Mass.; three sons: Ulf Jr and Jean-Paul, both of Palm Beach, and Kaj, of Stockholm; two brothers, and two grandchildren.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bjorlin, Ulf
1933 births
1993 deaths
Swedish composers
Swedish male composers
Swedish conductors (music)
Male conductors (music)
20th-century conductors (music)
20th-century composers
Burials at Norra begravningsplatsen
20th-century Swedish male musicians
20th-century Swedish musicians