Andeliga Sånger

Johan August Söderman (1832–1876) was a leading figure among the Romantic generation of Swedish composers and a significant influence on his successors, Hugo Alfvén and Wilhelm Peterson-Berger. His vocal style is noteworthy for its imitation and fugal expositions as well as for warm sonorities offset by dissonant suspensions. Much of his lieder and choral music intimate an underlying influence of folk material. These seven short works, published together as Andeliga Sånger (Spiritual Songs) in 1872, were originally scored for mixed voices (SATB with divisi) and organ accompaniment with a soprano solo appearing in both the Kyrie and the Virgo gloriosa. This SAM-Klang version should be performed unaccompanied. The more texturally dense moments of the original are covered here either by soprano and alto divisi (Domine) or an optional second alto part (Kyrie, Agnus Dei and Benedictus).