Music of Sweden
The music of Sweden shares roots with its neighbouring countries in Scandinavia, as well as Eastern Europe, including polka, schottische, waltz, polska and mazurka.
Despite the oppression, several fiddlers achieved a reputation for their virtuosity, including Jämtland's Lapp-Nils, Bingsjö's Pekkos Per and Malung's Lejsme-Per Larsson.
The Swedish bagpipes (säckpipa) has been part of a long-running folk tradition, passed down orally until the death of Gudmunds Nils Larsson in 1949.
In the 1960s, Swedish jazz musicians like Jan Johansson used folk influences in their work, resulting in an early 1970s series of music festivals in Stockholm.
His harmonic language was very personal, although his ability to develop motives never reached the level of the Viennese composers such as Mozart or Haydn.
He gained most of his recognition after his death, and composers such as Atterberg and Wilhelm Stenhammar worked hard to raise interest in Berwalds' music.
He studied for some years in Berlin, where he came in contact with German high romanticism, such as Bruckner and Wagner, which influenced him a lot when he wrote his two symphonies.
He also wrote six string quartets, a respectable amount of piano music and one opera, Tyrfing, treating a Norse mythological subject.
Evert Taube, Povel Ramel, Cornelis Vreeswijk, Fred Akerstrom are all popular modern troubadours, considered to be classics in Swedish music.
Sweden also has a very prominent choral music tradition, deriving in part from the cultural importance of Swedish folk songs and the popularity of choir schools.
Lunds Studentsångförening (LSS) and Orphei Drängar (OD) are two world-class male choirs singing both in Swedish and other languages.
The most famous Swedish popular music act of all time is ABBA, composed of members Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.
Their sales figures are disputed but claims have been made of 380 million records around the world, making them the second-most successful group in history after The Beatles.
ABBA marked the beginning of an era in which Swedish pop music gained international prominence, a position it still maintains today.
Cheiron Studios, spearheaded by Denniz Pop and his protégé Max Martin, helped Ace of Base become an international success, and then went on to create some of the biggest hits of Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys, NSYNC, Westlife, and later Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift and The Weeknd, to name just a few.
Other prominent producers who were part of Cheiron include Carl Falk, Rami Yacoub, Kristian Lundin, Per Magnusson and Andreas Carlsson.
In Cheiron's and Max Martin's wake a number of successful producers have also emerged in later years, including Shellback, Bloodshy & Avant, and RedOne.
Some of the most successful post-ABBA popular music artists from Sweden are Europe, Roxette, Madleen Kane, Agnes, Ace of Base, Kent, Carola Häggkvist, Army of Lovers, Neneh and Eagle-Eye Cherry, Leila K, Robyn, A*Teens, Nanne Grönvall, The Cardigans, BWO, Andreas Johnson, Alcazar, and September.
A number of renowned rock and pop-oriented artists have come out of the country in recent years, including Eskobar, Bob Hund, Clawfinger, The Sounds, The Hives, Hardcore Superstar, Millencolin, Sahara Hotnights, The Hellacopters, The Ark, Infinite Mass, Mando Diao, Looptroop Rockers and José González.
Some Swedish easy listening/contemporary groups and artists who are not as well known internationally, but are recognized in Sweden, include Gyllene Tider, Peter Jöback, Lill-Babs Svensson, Marie Fredriksson, Laleh, Per Gessle, Ted Gärdestad, Helen Sjöholm, Charlotte Perrelli, Loreen, Sanna Nielsen, Lena Philipsson and Patrik Isaksson.
More recent acts worth mentioning are Promoe (of Looptroop Rockers), Roffe Ruff, Snook, Ison & Fille, Maskinen, Million Stylez, Rebstar, Adam Tensta, and Drain Gang.
More aggressive early hardcore punk bands include Asta Kask, Charta 77, Mob 47, Anti Cimex, Totalitär, Homy Hogs, T.S.T, Headcleaners, and The Shitlickers.
Some later influential bands of the aggressive sort are for example Disfear, Driller Killer, Wolfbrigade, Loudpipes, Warvictims, Bombshell Rocks, and Raised Fist.
Other famous bands include Pain of Salvation, Entombed, Dismember, Hypocrisy, Amon Amarth, Amaranthe, Soilwork, Freak Kitchen, Sabaton and more.
[citation needed] Sweden is also known in some circles for its progressive and jazz-rock musicians, particularly for virtuoso-led acts including Andromeda, Anekdoten, Änglagård, Arbete och Fritid, Björn J:son Lindh, Bo Kaspers Orkester, Janne Schaffer, Kaipa, Landberk, Samla Mammas Manna, Opeth, The Flower Kings, and Beardfish.
Some of those artists were progressive in a musical sense, such as Bo Hansson, Samla Mammas Manna and Träd, Gräs och Stenar.
Other similar artists of note are John Dahlbäck, Manse, Eric Prydz, Nause, Albin Myers, the duo Dada Life, Galantis, Adrian Lux, Basshunter, Otto Knows, Alesso, Rebecca & Fiona, Cazzette, Jakob Liedholm, Sebjak, AronChupa, Icona Pop, Will & Dan, Brohug and Tjernberg.
Secretive duo The Knife was highly rated among critics, and Sally Shapiro, is the pseudonym of producer Johan Agebjörn and a Swedish singer.
In 2006, Basshunter became popular with his eurotrance dance songs, based on long-standing themes set in mid to late 2000s computer-centric culture.
There is even a special Swedish subgenre of techno, the best-known producer within this genre being Adam Beyer, head of the Drumcode label with notable artists such as Cari Lekebusch, Joel Mull, Henrik B, etc.
