Wikmanson, Johan

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Wikmanson, Johan

Wikmanson, Johan, Swedish organist and composer; b. Stockholm, Dec. 28,1753; d. there, Jan. 10,1800. He was trained as an engineer, but also had lessons in thoroughbass and piano from H. P. Johnsen; also studied composition with Abbé Vogler and J. M. Kraus. He served as organist at the Dutch Reformed Church (1772-81) and at the Storkyrkan Cathedral (1781-1800); in 1788 he was elected a member of the Royal Academy of Music, where he was made director of education in 1796 and a teacher of harmony and theory in 1797. His output reveals the influence of Kraus, Haydn, and C. P. E. Bach. Among his compositions are music for various stage pieces, Menuetto allegro for Orch., 3 string quartets (publ, in Stockholm, 1801; ed. in Monumenta Musicae Svecicae, II, 1970), a Zither Sonata, numerous keyboard works, including 2 piano sonatas, a cantata, Häckingen, and some 30 songs.

Bibliography

C.-G. Mörner, /. W. und de Brüder Silverstolpe (diss., Univ. of Uppsala, 1952).

—Nicolas Slonimsky/Laura Kuhn/Dennis McIntire