Rolf Martinsson (b. 1956) is one of Sweden's internationally leading composers. With his musical roots in late romanticism, combined with impressionistic coloring and a highly driven craftsmanship, he has created a strongly personal, expressive tonal language with great appeal to both musicians and audiences. It was with his solo concerts that Rolf Martinsson reached the big international stages. In recent years, the vocal works have come to play one
an increasingly large role in his creation.
The international breakthrough came with the trumpet concertoBridge(1998) written forHåkan Hardenberger, which has been performed over 60 times around
around the world since the premiere in Gothenburg. It was followed by a series of solo concertos dedicated to various soloists, written with their particular skills and personalities in mind, among theseFairlight – Trombone ConcertoforChristian Lindberg,Cello ConcertoforMats Lidström,Concert fantasticfor the clarinetistMartin Fröst,Golden Harmonyfor the soprano saxophonistAnders Paulssonand lastlySoundscape(2022) for the hornistFelix Klieser.The concerts have subsequently been recorded by other prominent soloists.
Rolf Martinsson's collaborations with orchestras worldwide have led to performances in concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, New York, Musikverein, Vienna, Berliner Philharmonie, Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, Tonhalle Zürich, Royal Festival Hall, London, Suntory Hall, Tokyo, Hamer Hall, Melbourne, etc. .
In recent years, the vocal works have been composed for and in collaboration with the sopranoLisa Larssoncame to play a significant role. Among these, the large international joint orders stand outGarden of Devotion(to lyrics by Tagore) andIch denke Dein…(to texts by Rilke, Gothe and Eichendorff), as well as Martinsson's orchestrations of Franz Berwald's songs inDream tripand Clara Schumann's songs inHomage to Clara. The collaboration with Lisa Larsson has resulted in four portrait albums released on BIS, Challenge Records and Daphne. The vocal works also include Martinsson'sLukas passionwhich has become a recurring work in the repertoire during Easter.
But Martinsson has not only worked with solo works. Among his most performed orchestral works is the concert openerOpen Mind(2005) and the Schönberg tributeAS in Memoriam(1999) for string orchestra. In 2008, Rolf Martinsson was in focus during the Stockholm Concert Hall Composer Festival with over 20 performances by, among others, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Sakari Oramoto whom he composed hisConcerto for Orchestra.
Although Martinsson is primarily known as an orchestral composer, he has also composed around 60 chamber music works and solo pieces. Upcoming orders include the operaAmyfor the Royal Opera in Stockholm, oneRequiemfor Växjö Cathedral and other clients, andSymphony no. 1for the Royal Philharmonic in Stockholm.
Rolf Martinsson has been in the spotlight at several festivals and held the position of Composer-in-Residence with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Malmö Symphony Orchestra, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra and others. He has been awarded several times (Great Christ Johnson prize, Rosenberg prize, the royal medal Litteris et artibus, etc.), he is a professor of composition at the University of Music in Malmö and a member of the Royal Academy of Music.
