Per Tengstrand

Per Tengstrand, who was a featured performer at the inaugural concert for EMPAC’s opening, is a Swedish concert pianist who has performed internationally and has a special interest in the relationship between the evolving technology of the piano and development of piano repertoire. During this residency he recorded work for solo piano by Beethoven—an emblematic body of work that evolved in relation to technological shifts in piano design—as part of Tengstrand’s effort to record the complete piano sonata cycle for his Mindfeel label.

Tengstrand performed the complete Beethoven cycle in a number of cities and venues, and blogged extensively about his artistic approach to learning and recording all 32 sonatas, posting detailed analyses of each work demonstrated with short sound files. An advocate of Scandinavian repertoire, in 2005 Tengstrand was decorated by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden with the Royal Medal Litteris et Artibus for outstanding service to the arts, the youngest recipient ever to be so honored.