Music of Sweden

Sweden shares the tradition of Nordic folk dance music with its neighbouring countries, which include including polka, schottis, waltz, polska and mazurka. The accordion, clarinet, fiddle and nyckelharpa are among the most common Swedish folk instruments. This instrumental genre is the biggest one in Swedish traditional music. In the 1960s, Swedish youth sparked a roots revival in Swedish folk culture. Many joined spelmanslag (folk musicians' clubs) and performed on mainstream radio and TV. They focused on instrumental polska music, with vocals and influences from other traditional genres becoming more prominent since the 1990s.

Related Topics:
Sweden - Nordic folk dance music - Polka - Schottis - Waltz - Polska - Mazurka - Accordion - Clarinet - Fiddle - Nyckelharpa - 1960s - Roots revival - Spelmanslag - Radio - TV - Polska - 1990s

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Swedish music has also included more modern and pop influences. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Scandinavian death metal bands became very popular with the international heavy metal community. Some of the greatest innovators in the entire metal scene hail from Sweden. Swedish pop bands like ABBA, Roxette, Army of Lovers, Ace of Base and The Cardigans have had international success. A number of bands with less emphasis on pop music have come out of the country in recent years, including The Hives, Refused, Millencolin, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Sahara Hotnights, The Hellacopters, Backyard Babies, The Soundtrack Of Our Lives and Kent.

Related Topics:
Pop - 1980s - 1990s - Scandinavian death metal - Heavy metal - ABBA - Roxette - Army of Lovers - Ace of Base - The Cardigans - The Hives - Refused - Millencolin - The (International) Noise Conspiracy - Sahara Hotnights - The Hellacopters - Backyard Babies - The Soundtrack Of Our Lives - Kent

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Sweden has been called the third biggest exporter of music in the world, after USA and UK respectively. Ironically ABBA was a much bigger success abroad than in Sweden and for example the largely unknown artist DeDe was so big in Japan in the late 1990s that she was made into a doll. Sweden also historically dominate the Scandinavian music scene, with Denmark and Norway listening to music in Swedish rather than the other way around.

Related Topics:
USA - UK - Denmark - Norway

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