Opera on the Move in the Nordic Countries during the Long 19th ...

Music at the Royal Swedish <strong>Opera</strong> in Stockholm…
The Royal Swedish <strong>Opera</strong> as a music institution
The Royal Swedish opera was for a long time the principal stage in Stockholm
for opera, drama and concert performances. Not only was it the first
arena built for musical activities, it was also the first to be institutionalised
as such, 8 and set many of the standards for the institutionalisation of public
musical life in Stockholm during the nineteenth century. There was an
organisational, a social and a practical purpose behind it, with rules and
regulations, a more or less firm financial basis, a fixed location, permanent
staff, an established audience and rules of social conduct. The music and
concerts at the Royal Swedish <strong>Opera</strong> therefore played a key role in the general
concert activities in Stockholm. The institution provided a stable base
for musicians and singers in the city, and it was one of the few places where
they could make a living.
Music was played on a variety of occasions. Apart from opera, it was
used in the spoken dramas as diegetic (or non-diegetic) accompaniment
and between acts. It was not confined to lyrical and dramatic performances,
however, but was also played in concerts.
Concerts at the Royal Swedish <strong>Opera</strong>
Concerts were given on a more or less regular basis. In a statistical survey
of the period 1844 to 1880 9 I noted that the number of concerts varied from
year to year: on average there were six or seven a year, but the number
varied from two to 15. Many of them were benefit concerts for employed
singers or musicians, the <strong>Opera</strong> Orchestra, or some charity. Concerts were
also put on for profit. Visiting artists appeared on the royal stage, in concerts
arranged by the <strong>Opera</strong> or the artists. Artists wishing to give their own
concerts had to apply for permission from the <strong>Opera</strong> Board. If permission
was granted the artist concerned had to pay a fee, or “daily charge” 10 of 400
R:dr rmt 11 . This was a notable sum, about a third of a year’s salary for one of
8 In my forthcoming thesis I examine the institutionalisation of musical life in Stockholm
during the mid-nineteenth century in detail, and it is clear that the Royal Swedish
<strong>Opera</strong> had a unique position as the first music institution functioning as a model or
inspiration in the development of public musical life in the city.
9 This survey was based on the playbills that were posted daily outside the Royal
Swedish <strong>Opera</strong> announcing the performances of the day, which are now accessible in
the archives. It is part of a larger survey that will be published in my forthcoming
thesis.
10 “Dagkostnaderna”.
11 From 1863 the amount was set at 400 R:d rmt, before this it was in a different
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