Alice Tegnér

Alice Charlotta Tegnér was born as Alice Sandström on 12 March 1864 in Karlshamn (Sweden). Her father, the sea captain Eduard Sandström, was an enthusiastic amateur musician who encouraged her musical talent from an early age. She received her first piano lessons as a child and began composing and improvising at the piano. In 1877 she moved to Stockholm, where she attended the Åhlinska School and studied piano with Hermann Berens. After her father's death in 1879, financial difficulties prevented her from pursuing a professional musical education. Instead, she attended the Högre lärarinneseminariet in Stockholm from 1880 to 1883, training as a teacher while continuing her piano studies with Ludvig Norman.
After completing her education, she worked as a governess in Finland before returning to Stockholm. In 1885 she married Jakob Tegnér, a lawyer and publishing official who was a grandson of the Swedish poet Esaias Tegnér. In 1891 the family moved to Djursholm, near Stockholm, where Alice Tegnér became an important figure in the local musical life. She worked as an organist, choir leader, music teacher and concert organiser. From 1893 to 1911 she also taught music at the Djursholm school.
During these years Tegnér began composing children's songs, initially for her own sons. In 1892 her first collection, "Sjung med oss, mamma!" (Sing with us, Mummy!), was published. It was followed by eight further volumes until 1934. These collections were enormously successful and established her reputation as one of Sweden's leading composers of children's music. Among her best-known songs are "Bä, bä, vita lamm", "Mors lilla Olle", "Sov du lilla videung" and the Christmas song "Betlehems stjärna" (Gläns över sjö och strand), based on a poem by Viktor Rydberg.
Alongside her children's songs, Tegnér continued her musical education, studying composition, organ and counterpoint with Gustaf Hägg and Johan Lindegren. In 1901 she composed a Sonata for Violin and Piano, one of her most important instrumental works. Her compositions also include numerous songs for voice and piano, choral works, cantatas, piano pieces and chamber music. In 1904 she published the school song collection "Unga röster" and in 1905 she helped establish the Samfundet för unison sång, an organisation dedicated to promoting communal singing. The following year she edited the widely distributed songbook "Sjung, svenska folk!".
In 1912 the Tegnér family moved to Tullinge, south of Stockholm. Although she was no longer directly involved in the musical life of Djursholm, she continued composing, teaching and organising concerts. In 1914 she received the royal medal "Litteris et Artibus" in recognition of her musical achievements. In 1924 she won several prizes in a composition competition for women, and in 1926 she was elected a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. Following her husband's death in the same year, she eventually returned to Stockholm.
During her later years Tegnér remained active as a composer and pianist. From 1939 onwards she participated in concert tours throughout Sweden, performing her children's songs together with young singers. In 1943 she initiated the publication of "Nu ska vi sjunga", a school songbook which became one of the most widely used collections of children's songs in Sweden.
Alice Tegnér died on 26 May 1943 in Stockholm (Sweden).

In my possession is the autograph manuscript of "Vad rätt du tänkt" for mixed choir by Alice Tegnér. The work is a setting of a poem by Viktor Rydberg (1828–1895), taken from his "Kantat vid jubelfestpromotionen" (1877). The manuscript contains the complete composition in D-flat major, marked "Andante", and is dated 1900. It bears Tegnér's signature and a personal dedication "Till Ernst Beckman" (To Ernst Beckman).
Ernst Beckman (1850–1924) was a Swedish journalist, politician and an influential figure in the cultural life of Djursholm. He was personally acquainted with both Alice Tegnér and Viktor Rydberg and had written the lyrics for Tegnér's song "Vännelill" (1899).