ABSTRACT
One of the most consistent features of the reception of the Swedish composer Ture Rangström is the use of landscape imagery to describe and explain his music. By implication, Westberg ties the idea of national identity to authentic self-expression: Rangström is, for him, thoroughly genuine and completely national. Early twentieth-century Sweden differed from the neighbouring countries in that distinct regional identities were celebrated rather than a single, nationwide ideal. The retentive power of local tradition is evidenced by the tendency of modern-day Swedes to describe their regional identity in terms of the ancient landskap rather than by the current administrative regions. Rangström’s lived experience of his adopted landscape thus gave him a connection to what was seen as the essence of Swedishness. In Swedish terms, he cultivated ursvensk character in the landskap of his hembygd.
