Instrumentation: va, db, pf
Britta Byström (b. 1977) is a Swedish composer known for her richly textured orchestral works and a distinctive sensitivity to sound and resonance, often described as impressionistic. Born in Sundsvall, she studied composition with Pär Lindgren and Bent Sørensen and has since written for a wide range of ensembles, including chamber music, vocal music, and opera—though her primary focus has been orchestral music.
Byström’s works have been performed by leading orchestras such as the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Gürzenich Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. She has composed for soloists including Malin Broman, Rick Stotijn, Radovan Vlatković, and Janine Jansen.
She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Carin Malmlöf-Forssling Composer’s Prize (2010), Lilla Christ Johnson Prize (2012), and the Stora Christ Johnson Prize (2020). Her viola concerto A Walk After Dark, written for Ellen Nisbeth, received the Da-Capo Prize at the Brandenburger Biennale in 2014. In 2016, she was awarded the Elaine Lebenbom Award for Female Composers by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, and her song cycle Notes From the City of the Sun, featuring soprano Malin Byström, was recognized as a “recommended work” at the International Rostrum of Composers in 2019.
Highlights of her recent work include Infinite Rooms, a double concerto for violin/viola and double bass inspired by Yayoi Kusama’s immersive art installations, and Parallel Universes, an orchestral work based on cosmologist Max Tegmark’s theories. The latter was commissioned by the BBC to mark the 150th anniversary of the Royal Albert Hall and premiered at the BBC Proms in 2021. Her chamber opera Gállábártnit, with a Sami-language libretto by Rawdna Carita Eira, premiered at Soundstreams in Toronto in 2019.
Byström’s music has been published by Edition Wilhelm Hansen since 2010. She became a member of the Swedish Society of Composers in 2002 and was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in 2016.