Gehrmans Musikförlag receives the Government's Honourable Mention
"With over 130 years of experience and an unwavering belief in new music, Gehrmans Musikförlag is not just a historical name – but a living export engine for Swedish contemporary art music," states the jury.
On June 17, Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Benjamin Dousa presented the Government’s Music Export Prize, and an Honourable Mention for achievements of particular importance to the internationalisation of Swedish music was awarded to Gehrmans Musikförlag.
– It is a great honor to receive the Government's Honorary Mention, says Gehrman's CEO Filiz Erat Edhlund. In recent years, we have intensified our work to promote our composer's music internationally, and that makes it especially gratifying to now receive proof that our efforts are making an impact. Swedish music has a strong reputation and we are proud to contribute to it reaching new listeners and performers around the world.
The Government's Music Export Prize was installed in 1997 and for 2024 the winner is XX. In 2014, the Honorary Mention " for contributions of particular importance to the internationalisation of Swedish music " was established. The prize should only be awarded when there are special reasons to do so and has previously been awarded to, among others, Melodifestivalen and Esa-Pekka Salonen – and now Gehrmans Musikförlag.
Gehrmans Musikförlag represents many of Sweden's most prominent creators of choral, orchestral and chamber music and educational material, and publishes a broad span of music, from 19th century choral songs to new opera. Recently, Johan Ullén's One Last Tango was premiered in London, commissioned by the BBC, while Albert Schnelzer's Through the Eye of the Pegasus will be performed in both Berlin and Australia in August and Daniel Nelson's Steampunk Blizzard will be next performed by the New York Philharmonic in February 2026. Karin Rehnqvist was portrayed in 2024 in the British magazine Grammophone as one of the most important artists of our time. Allan Pettersson's symphonies, Rolf Martinsson's solo concerts and choral music by composers such as Anna-Karin Klockar, Matthew Peterson, Sven-David Sandström, Ingvar Lidholm and Susanna Lindmark are viewed as modern classics and performed at festivals and concerts around the world.
Over the past year, Gehrnans Musikförlag has presented its composers' music at conferences in Germany, Denmark, Finland and the USA and promotes gender equality in the music industry through, among other contributions, several international initiatives on music by women and participation in the celebrated project Elna .
The entire jury's citation for the Government's Honorable Mention 2024:
"Since 1893, Gehrmans Musikförlag has been a cornerstone of Swedish musical life. Today, the publishing house is a key player in the Nordic and international art music landscape. By promoting both classics such as Lars-Erik Larsson and Hugo Alfvén, and contemporary innovators like Karin Rehnqvist, Benjamin Staern, and Thomas Jennefelt, Gehrmans has made Swedish music a matter of international interest.
The company’s rental service for orchestral materials enables performances of Swedish repertoire on stages around the world, while its strong choral catalog carries the Swedish choral tradition far beyond national borders. Through active support for commissions, world premieres, and international collaborations—often via co-commissions with European concert halls—Gehrmans has become a vital link between Swedish composers and a global audience.
With over 130 years of experience and an unwavering belief in new music, Gehrmans Musikförlag is not just a historic name—it is a living engine for the export of Swedish art music today."
Press contact : Janna Vettergren, janna.vettergren@gehrmans.se , 070-7576814
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Photo above:
Strings from the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra/photo GSO Play
Mikaeli Chamber Choir/photo Janna Vettergren
Gehrmans CEO Filiz Erat Edhlund/photo Pau Duell