Moses Pergament (1893–1977) was a Finnish-born Swedish composer, conductor, critic and writer who once occupied a notable place in Nordic musical life but whose music has largely disappeared from the repertoire.

This website is dedicated to the rediscovery of his work: presenting historical documents, translations, recordings and commentary.

Pergament’s music bridged a variety of cultures and eras. Born in Helsinki to an Orthodox Jewish family, he studied in Saint Petersburg, Berlin, Helsinki and Stockholm, while remaining self-taught as a composer. He settled permanently in Sweden in the early 1920s and became a prominent figure in the country’s musical life. From his cross-cultural heritage he drew deep inspiration, believing that his upbringing in Jewish musical traditions had given him an intuitive foundation for his art. Through his lifelong activities as a music critic, he played an important role in introducing contemporary European musical currents to Swedish audiences.

Pergament’s extensive output includes operas, orchestral works, songs, chamber music, concertos, film music, choral compositions and incidental music. Among his most significant works is the choral symphony Den judiska sången (‘The Jewish Song’), a major composition written during World War II that occupies a unique place in Swedish twentieth-century music. Renewed interest in recent years has begun to restore Pergament’s place within the broader narrative of Nordic musical modernism.