Helena Munktell - Chamber Works (Various Artists)

Information

Composer: Helena Munktell

• Violin Sonata in E flat major, Op. 21
• 10 Mélodies
• Kleines Trio

Tobias Ringborg, violin

Sofie Asplund, soprano

Kristina Winiarski, cello

Peter Friis Johansson, piano

Date: 2021

Label: BIS

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Review

Helena Munktell (1852-1919) studied singing and piano in Stockholm, Vienna and Paris, was elected to the Swedish Royal Academy in 1915 and was a founder member of the Society of Swedish Composers. At the start of her career she got on better in France than at home. The Gallic influence on her 1905 Violin Sonata, the most significant work included here, is obvious. Franck’s famous Sonata was the model but there is a more fin de siècle mood to Munktell’s piece.

The Scherzo second movement (of four) has the most memorable theme, built on a snappy rhythm. The version known before inexplicable cuts were made by the composer is included as an appendix. The reprise of the Scherzo’s theme in the finale is the sonata’s moment of triumph. Beyond that, the piece is never less than fluent but a residual feeling prevails of plenteous figuration and transition at the expense of actual material. More fire, charisma or willingness to seize the music by the scruff of the neck in Tobias Ringborg’s refined playing might have helped argue otherwise.

The preparatory Kleines Trio can be similarly fey and lacking a signature, but for a slow movement that reveals Munktell’s ability to derive something of interest from subtle structural devices such as overlapping. More of that is found in Dix Mélodies, to poems by Amédée-Landély Hettich or her translations of Swedish ones. Again, the slower, emotionally heavier songs have most impact and allow Munktell to demonstrate her propensity to mine something multilayered from something simple. That’s particularly true of the two cradle songs but there are further examples in ‘Si tu le voulais’. ‘Fascination’ has something of Grieg’s Nordic fantasy realm about it, opening with anti-metropolitan cragginess. ‘Cantilène’ comes from Munktell’s comic opera I Firenze, the first by a woman to be staged at the Royal Swedish Opera. Sofie Asplund’s pearly tone and innocent simplicity suit them well, as does Peter Friis Johansson’s knowing accompaniment.

— Andrew Mellor

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Helena Munktell (24 November 1852 – 10 September 1919) was a Swedish composer. Born into an artistic family in Grycksbo, she studied music at the Stockholm Conservatory, then in Vienna with Julius Epstein, and in Paris with Benjamin Godard. Munktell was an active participant in Parisian musical scene. Her music blends French Romantism and Impressionism with Swedish folk music. She composed in a variety of genres, including orchestral, choral and chamber music, as well as art songs. Munktell was a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music, and a founder of the Swedish Society of Composers.

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Tobias Ringborg (born 2 November 1973 in Stockholm) is a Swedish violinist and conductor. He graduated from the Royal University College of Music in Stockholm, then furthered his studies with teachers such as Herman Krebbers, Igor Oistrakh and Lewis Kaplan at the Juilliard School. Ringborg has performed with all major Swedish orchestras and collaborated with esteemed conductors such as Gennady Rozhdestvensky and Neeme Järvi. In 2001 he made his debut as a conductor at Folkoperan, Stockholm. A passionate advocate for Swedish music, Ringborg has recorded many works by Swedish composers.

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Peter Friis Johansson (born 1983) is a Swedish classical pianist. He studied at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm with Anders Kilström and Mats Widlund, and further develops his musicality with Konstantin Bogino. In 2014 Johansson took his first step in his US career with the gold medal at the International Piano-e-Competition in Fairbanks, Alaska. He is currently pursuing many projects, including performing the eleven completed piano sonatas by Franz Schubert. Johansson is also a keen performer of contemporary music, and has premiered the new piano concertos by Sven-David Sandström and Andrea Tarrodi.

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