Director-in-Chief
of the American Union of Swedish Singers (A.U.S.S.) is Edgar E. Eklof of the
American Swedish Institute Male Chorus. Mr.
Eklof has been the director of the local chorus since 1970.
In the thirty years under his direction, the chorus has steadily grown,
not only in size, but in quality and reputation.
Mr.
Eklof received his Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Minnesota,
Duluth and a Master of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music in New
York. Prior to his joining the
faculty of Augsburg College in Minneapolis in 1967 he was the conductor of the a
cappella choirs of the University of South Dakota, Southeastern Louisiana Sate
University and Northwestern College in Minneapolis. Mr. Eklof, a solo performer as well as a conductor, has
appeared in concert and opera in various parts of the United States, and has
performed numerous roles with the St. Paul Civic Opera Company. He studied voice privately with the noted Miguel Tontecha of
Paris, France and some of New York’s most authoritative vocal instructors of
the Metropolitan Opera Association.
In
1963, the National Association of Teachers of Singing selected him to represent
six states in the “Singer of the Year” competition. Eklof was elected to the Prestigious Evergreen Club, an
honorary musical society for his many years of outstanding contributions to the
advancement of music in the Twin City area.
He holds the King of Sweden’s Personal Gold Medal, which was conferred
on him by Prince Bertil in 1978.
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