Georg Riedel fell asleep on Sunday evening following a period of illness, surrounded by his family. He was 90 years old.
Georg Riedel is above all known for having composed the music for Olle Hellbom’s films based on Astrid Lindgren’s books, between 1969–73, including “Ida’s summer song” and “Du käre lille snickerbo”, but also for songs to texts by Barbro Lindgren and Lennart Hellsing.
He also played jazz bass and more of the greatest Swedish jazz musicians. Together with Jan Johansson, in the 60s he was behind Sweden’s best-selling jazz record, “Jazz på svenska”, which is based on folk songs.
Another piece that is strongly associated with him is Monica Zetterlund’s hit “Sakta vi gå gönm stan”, where Riedel arranged and played bass.
Georg Riedel also composed art music, for example the opera Hemsöborna, 1994.
Georg Riedel in 2012. Photo: Eva Tedesjö
Georg Riedel was born in what was then Czechoslovakia in 1934 and emigrated to Sweden with his family at the age of four, when the family, which is of Jewish descent, fled the Nazis.
His first instrument was the violin, but then he switched to double bass, which he studied at the Academy of Music. He was hired already in the 50s by Arne Domnérus Nalenbandet.
He managed during his long career to be awarded a number of awards and honors, including two Grammys and the Evert Taube Scholarship. In 2020 he was inducted into the Swedish music hall of fame and as recently as last year he was awarded the Alfons-Bokalen children’s culture award.
“For music without drawing boundaries between childish or adult melodies and for the courage to let every component of text and music shine together without rebuke, completely in the spirit of Gunilla Bergström,” read the justification.
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