Tobias Broström (b. 1978) began his musical career as a percussionist, and is known for his rhythmically powerful music, but also for his colorful orchestration and his distinct sense of harmony. The collaboration with the trumpeter Håkan Hardenberger has brought his music to the international stages. Today he is one of the most performed Scandinavian composers of his generation.
Tobias Broström had four years of university studies in percussion at the Academy of Music in Malmö before he began studying composition with Rolf Martinsson and then with the Italian composer, Professor Luca Franscesconi. The big breakthrough came alongArena – Percussion concert no. 1(2004), which was written directly for soloist award winner Johan Bridger.
Between 2006 and 2009, Broström was composer-in-residence at the Gävle Symphony Orchestra. This commitment meant, among other things, that the orchestra premiered two newly written works per season. Among these is the trumpet concertoLucerne(2009) which Håkan Hardenberger subsequently played about 30 times with orchestras such as Detroit SO, BBC Philharmonic, Komische Oper Berlin and others. In 2019, the collaboration with Hardenberger continued with the double trumpet concertoNigredo: Dark Night of the Soul, composed for Hardenberger and Belgian trumpeter Jeroen Berwaerts. The concert was a joint commission between Malmö SO, BBC3/BBC NOW and Sweden's Radio Symphony Orchestra. It had its British premiere at the Royal Albert Hall during the BBC Proms in July 2019.
Nigredois the first part in a triology of orchestral works inspired by alchemy and Jungian psychology. In September 2022, the second part was premiered,Symphony no. 1 – Albedo,by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and Santtu-Matias Rouvali. The third part of the trilogy,Rubedo: The Red Chapterreceived its premiere with the Royal Philharmonic in connection with Broström being dedicated to the Stockholm Concert Hall Composer's Weekend 2023. Broström is currently composing his second symphony on order from the Gothenburg Symphony.
Tobias Broström also composes chamber music, in addition to a long line of works for percussion, his can be mentionedString Quartet No. 1 for the American string quartet Brooklyn Rider.
