If you're just gonna listen to one: Midsommarvaka (Swedish Rhapsody #1)
Background
Alfvén is another composer who falls into the Nationalist category, and is Sweden's best-known composer. He was a central figure in Swedish culture for many decades, and was also an accomplished painter and writer.
The last composer I talked about here was Alban Berg, who was born just thirteen years after Hugo Alfvén. While Alfvén falls squarely in the late Romantic period, Berg is modern, and the difference is quite notable in their compositions...
Orchestral
Alfvén wrote a handful of symphonies and a few pieces he called Swedish Rhapsodies, along with one-two dozen other symphonic pieces. The most famous of these, Swedish Rhapsody #1 (sometimes called Midsommarvaka, and often just called the Swedish Rhapsody), is one of the best known classical compositions in Sweden.
- Swedish Rhapsodies: #1 (Midsommarvaka) | #2 (Uppsala Rhapsody) | Swedish Rhapsody #3
- En Skargardssagen (symphonic poem)
- Symphony #4 (#4 is particularly beautiful; full videos of other symphonies can be found on YouTube...)
Other
Other compositions include a few pieces for chamber combinations, some songs, and a handful of works for voice and orchestra. Recordings of his works focus on his symphonic works, though, and it is that style for which he is best known.
