Dahl, Viking
Dahl, Viking
Dahl, Viking , Danish organist and composer; b. Osby, Oct. 8, 1895; d. Stockholm, Jan. 5, 1945. He studied organ at the Stockholm Cons. (1915–19), and concurrently took courses in art history. In 1920 he went to Paris, where he had lessons in modern dance with Isadora Duncan and in composition with Koechlin; he later completed his studies in Copenhagen and Berlin. In 1921 he went to Lund as a music teacher, and from 1926 he served as organist of Varberg Church. After composing in both impressionist and expressionist styles, he turned to Swedish folk music for inspiration. His first work, the Oriental Suite for Orch. (1919), was followed by his choreographic poem Maison de fous (Paris, 1920), which attracted considerable attention. His early promise as a composer, however, was not fulfilled.
—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire