2008-2016

Harald Göransson and the development of Church music in Sweden after 1945
The Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation, Project P2008-0108

The main purpose of this investigation has been to provide a picture of the change and developments in Swedish church music during the second half of the 20th century and mainly in the Church of Sweden. For this purpose Harald Göransson (1917-2004) provides an apt focus of the studies, due to his many organizational key positions and international contacts. His different roles as organist, teacher, music publisher and investigator were all characterized by a strong commitment to progress and innovation. Central questions are about his ideals and how his personal preferences were shaped. This means no easy opinion that history is made up of strong individuals, although this also holds some validity. Individuals are always part of a larger context with which they interact and which gives them their mandate.

Göransson was obviously a child of his time and of the education and training associated with that time. His adolescence and studies at the Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm were characterized mainly by ideals and music from the classical and romantic periods. Meanwhile he was strongly interested in popular music and jazz, a fact that have not previously been fully realised. He was a skilled piano accompanist and had aspirations of becoming of becoming a soloist.

A more rigorous ideal of "neue Sachlichkeit" took over when he at age 27 and newly married settled in Stockholm, and this ideal lasted for 25 years. After studies in musicology with Carl-Allan Moberg in Uppsala, Göransson was involved in music education activities at the Schola Cantorum at Storkyrkan in Stockholm, from 1942 the Cathedral of the new diocese. Here his music analytical skills were utilized as well as his interests in Gregorian chant. The latter led to in a study trip to Paris 1946. In 1951 he also attended the Schola Cantorum in Basel for three months and together with a number of Swedish alumni formed a Collegium Musicum in Stockholm, which remained active for more than 10 years and contributed to a changed perception of older music and instruments, later termed "early music". In the training and education the Swedish Cantors and Organists Göransson actively participated as a lecturer and conductor at numerous short courses. Very soon he also appeared as an articulated music theologian, albeit with no formal theological training. With his message he also visited Finland. His great interest in adult education was shown i several programmes in radio and later on in TV.

Göransson soon got involved in the Royal Academy of Music, where he was to remain for over 30 years as teacher in music analysis and liturgy, for one 6-year period in the capacity of director of the Department of Church music. In 1979 he was appointed professor. He was also involved in official reports about music and in various ways came to influence the content of music training both at the Academy and in ordinary schools. When the old cantor institution in Sweden was in danger, he drew attention to the many contributions it had given to the community. Overturning this institution not only meant an attack against church music but to "the total Swedish music scene" and "our music community", as he put it.
After World War II Göransson was involved in the association Fylkingen, which devoted a special interest in the contemporary music. He visited international various "music festivals" in Amsterdam, Salzburg and Darmstadt. Interest in the "new" music characterized him throughout life. As the national music consultant in the Swedish Church he also tried to develop church music by commissioning compositions from among others Sven-Erik Bäck, and further Bengt Hambraeus and Egil Hovland. New music as he saw it, was a new way to express the "tremendum et fascinosum" of the religious experience. Although he dared to test limits, but was also strongly concerned that the music would be of practical use. Several composers were involved in the compositions of new hymn melodies from the 1960s and onwards, although in retrospect some voices have been raised they should have been many more.

During the 40s and 50s Göransson was active as church musician, with his longest permanent position being that in the congregation of Lidingö. He was engaged in the singing of the congregation and thought that the smoothed rhythms in the Swedish chorale book of 1939 created problems of breathing. This he expressed in articles, in parallel with criticism of the harmonious structure of the musical settings. He held that the earliest versions of many older chorales had a rhythmic drive lost in later versions. Especially Ingmar Bengtsson - later successor of Moberg - became his personal mainstay in a way that has not been previously known. The change in church music from the 1950s was to considerable extent driven by scholars with an international outlook, who saw the problems related to chorale rhythm. Although partly critical of 19th century Swedish attempts, Göransson recognized them as restoration predecessors. Already in the 50s he was involved in a joint Nordic cooperation on the chorale, and even outside Scandinavia contacts were established within the area of hymnology and liturgiology.

The 1960s saw the rise of new popular music and protest singing. Questions emerged about the Church's relationship to this, not least because of several young "guitar priests" but also on account of increased impressions of gospel and jazz from abroad. Very important was the openness of the Second Vatican Council in the Roman Catholic Church. Göransson early came across similar tendencies through his international contacts and during his study trip to the United States in 1962 and renewed not least at the World Council of Churches in Uppsala 1968. Here was a theologically motivated ecumenism. Globalization with growing interest in folk music of other countries changed the perception of Swedish folk music as a basis for congregation singing and new composed church music.

Göransson became an active advocate of the popular repertoire, which led to criticism from colleagues who very influenced by the Musica Sacra-ideal of the late 19th century. His interest in the musical Jesus Christ Superstar was seen as a betrayal of his former ideals and the Church music. Göransson himself was fascinated by its ability to capture the interest of young people also spiritually and he described both lyrics and music as well made. His radicalism peaked around 1972 but did not include any desire to have older music traditions rejected.
From now on he refused to acknowledge that any particular style was essentially more fitting for church music than another. This idea was largely based on the emphasis on divine immanence claimed by the new secularization theology, which was presented to him in the Church Manual Committee (Handbokskommittén) of 1968. Though parameters for aesthetic value judgements - "quality" of music - were continually discussed they rarely were defined.

The movement of building small and neighbouring churches (Småkyrkorörelsen) and the increasing liturgical experimentation activities posed new questions, which were channelled into the aforementioned Church Manual Committee. When the Hymn Committee (Psalmkommittén) was established 1969 Göransson was given the main musical responsibility. In this work he also was involved in several international committees like Nordiska kyrkomusikrådet, Internationale Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Hymnologie, Ecclesia Cantans and Universa Laus. Despite some disagreements between individuals, the committee seems to have worked in transparency and formality. The committees stressed that their proposal presented in 1985 was not to be seen as immutable; rather both committees encouraged further musical creativity.

At the age of 75 Göransson presented his important thesis on the Swedish chorale hymnbook from 1697. His criticism of a former idealization of the edition showed some provocation, but unmistakably he also demonstrated his vast knowledge after a more than 50-year long study of the subject. During the next decade this expertise was presented in a number of books, articles and reviews. He also organized several performances of older Swedish mass music.

This study gives a fundamental basis for future investigations about the Swedish hymnbook and the Service book, both from 1986. In Riksarkivet Stockholm both committees has left a huge material. The study may hopefully function as a reference work in future discussions about the development of the church music in Sweden during the 20th century, with its many international relations.

Publications and more

I flera sammanhang har jag presenterat projektet liksom problemområden med anknytning till detta:

- Kyrkomusikens förändring i det sena 1800-talet
Västergötlands museum, Skara, 2010-09-23. Kyrkohistoriskt seminarium 2010, Arrangör Skara stifts kyrkobeskrivningskommitté och Västergötlands museum. Övriga föreläsare: Oloph Bexell, Jakob Lindblad och Margaretha Ridderstedt.

- Psalmboken 1986 och vad som hänt därefter. Från ett pågående forskningsprojekt. Missionskyrkan Uppsala, arr PRO, 2012-11-16.

- Intervju i tidningen Dagen 21/1 2013

- Kapitel i Melos och Logos - Festskrift till Folke Bohlin
”Johan Dillners tal vid orgelinvigningen i Harbo 1850 - Musikteologiska aspekter på en psalmorgel” i Melos och Logos - Festskrift till Folke 
Bohlin – redaktör Mattias Lundberg och Sven-Åke Selander, Artos förlag 2011 (s 81-91).


- Kapitel om ”Kyrkomusiken i Gamla Uppsala kyrka sedan medeltiden till idag”, i en bok med artiklar kring Gamla Uppsala kyrka skrivna av ett 10-tal olika forskare i olika ämnen. Redaktör var TD Gunnar Granber. Boken presenterades sommaren 2014 i samband med Uppsala stifts 850 års jubileum.

- Med forskningsprojektet i ryggen blev jag också inblandad i förberedelserna av 100-årsfirandet av Nathan Söderbloms ärkebiskopsvigning hösten 2014. Harald Göranssons morbror, domkyrkoorganisten i Skara Ivar Widéen, deltog i koralboksarbetet 1914-21. Detta arbete är något som enligt flera experter borde ges en fördjupad studie, det finns gott om material i UUB och SMB.

- Efter ansökningar från ett flertal fonder kunde hela projektet i november 2015 presenteras i bokform genom förlaget Artos, Skellefteå:  (1) Harald Göranssons studietid och verksamhet som kyrkomusiker, (2) Harald Göransson som musikpedagog och folkbildare, (3) Harald Göransson och gudstjänstmusikens omvandling, (4) Harald Göransson och psalmsångens förnyelse.

- Flera recensioner är på gång, den första presenterades i Kyrkomusikernas tidning våren 2016 (nr 4), där arbetet bedömdes ha stor historisk betydelse, en grundforskning som gav "ett ovärderligt material till en framtida svensk kyrkomusikhistoria". Även Svensk tidskrift för musikforskning och Kyrkohistorisk årsskrift har utlovat recensioner sommaren 2016.

- Delar av projektet har 2016 även presenterats muntligt i Vadstena, det gällde då främst arbetet med den gregorianska musiken. I KMA höll jag ett inledande anförande vid ett seminarium, föredraget hade rubriken "Vem har makten över musiken i Svenska kyrkan?".

Projektet har varit knutet till Statens musikverk där det funnits presenterat på deras hemsida, http://statensmusikverk.se/forskning/anders-dillmar/. Möjligen kommer även hela texten att publiceras här, när förlaget inte längre håller böckerna (7 år). Jag har även själv kortfattat presenterat projektet på min egen hemsida, som uppdateras kontinuerligt   (http://web.comhem.se/~u18344626/ klicka på länken ”Göransson”).