En folkmusikens förebild blir till: Eric Sahlström som grammofonartist

The nyckelharpa-player Eric Sahlström (1912–1986) is one of the most prominent folk musicians in Sweden. This article investigates how Sahlström got this position by examining the many gramophone records where he appears. In fact, from a relatively early age he played in the Swedish radio, which in turn led to an early debut as a record artist and thereafter to many gramophone recordings for a number of companies. The gramophone recordings are analysed as phono-graphic works, which means that they are regarded in their own right. The method contains three steps: listening to the recordings as technological constructions, investigating the circumstances under which the recordings were made, and, finally, considering the production ideals that governed the studio sessions, including the post-productions. The results show that Eric Sahlström was intro-duced as a prominent folk musician already in the recordings from the late 1950s. His music was presented with good sound quality, and he played traditional tunes as well as some of his own compositions. This concept was more or less repeated by several producers. In the 1970s, he was recorded several times at live sessions in his own neighbourhood. These gramophone records present Eric Sahlström as another kind of musician: an everyday performer in his local milieu.