Welcome to Ingesund School of Music

Concert pianist Aristo Sham, 29, from Hong Kong, alumnus and faculty member at Ingesund School of Music and resident of Arvika, Sweden, has won the gold medal at the prestigious Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in Texas.

After intense performances viewed by a global audience of over 20 million, he was awarded first prize, which includes over one million SEK in prize money, international tours, a recording contract, and the audience award.

In the final, he performed works by Brahms and Mendelssohn—the latter marking its first-ever appearance in the competition’s history. Sham has a strong connection to Sweden through his collaboration with Professor Julia Mustonen-Dahlkvist at Ingesund. She describes him as a rare musician with deep artistic integrity.

Earlier this week, the Polar Music Prize was awarded at the Grand Hôtel in Stockholm. In front of a diverse audience of national and international musicians, actors, other prominent guests, and members of the Swedish royal family, Brian May and Roger Taylor of Queen, Herbie Hancock, and Barbara Hannigan received the Polar Music Prize. As per tradition, an ensemble from Ingesund School of Music performed on the red carpet as guests arrived at the gala.

Jonathan Höglund, a student in the music teacher education programme specializing in jazz vocals, was the soloist of the day. How did it feel to perform for the crème de la crème of musicians from around the world?

Western music history has largely favored male artists, while female and non-binary artists and composers have been largely excluded from historical narratives. This has contributed to musical canons where important voices are missing. This is the topic of a seminar held at Ingesund School of Music in mid-May.

How can canonical traditions in music, that is, perceptions of what is most central within musical traditions, be challenged and expanded from a gender perspective? "Challenging musical canons" is a joint research and development project between Guro Gravem Johansen, Professor of Music Pedagogy at Ingesund School of Music, and Eva Beneke, Associate Professor of Classical Guitar, Gjertrud Pedersen, Associate Professor of Music History at the Norwegian Academy of Music.

He was supposed to become a scientist but has always loved singing and writing lyrics. During high school, he started writing and producing music using his computer. By early summer, Kevin Larsson will graduate with a bachelor's degree in music production from Ingesund School of Music.

Kevin grew up as far south in Sweden as you can get, specifically in Ystad. He doesn't have a background with musicians in the family, but the interest in music was cultivated early at home.

"My parents like music and always had MTV on when I was little – I was enchanted in front of the TV watching. So even though mom and dad don't practice music themselves, they passed on an interest."

It was during high school, where he studied the science program, that Kevin started to make his music interest a reality.

Singer and composer Lisa Östergren has been an active musician and vocal coach for many years. She is a vocal coach and jazz ensemble teacher at the Ingesund School of Music. As a composer, she is passionate about children's music, and this past weekend, she was awarded a Grammy for Best Children's Music.

Lisa Östergren has extensive experience as a teacher, having worked at folk high schools, cultural schools, and privately. When she is not teaching at the Ingesund School of Music, she is either on tour with one of her children's music projects or composing music in her hometown of Upplands Väsby.

Saga Haglund sees being a professional songwriter and music producer as a personal profession because you share a lot of yourself through your creations. It requires courage, even during weeks when you don't feel at your best. By believing in yourself and your craft, the following week can be a completely different story.

Saga Haglund grew up in Arvika and had her sights set on music from an early age. She pursued an aesthetic focus in both middle school and high school.

”After a detour to Norway for five years after graduation, I applied to a singing program at Solvik Folk High School in Skellefteå. After that education, I continued my studies at another folk high school, Mellansel in Höga Kusten, focusing on songwriting and music production.”