Norwegian conductor, singing teacher and composer. Music journalist Cecily Dam described him as "... a central figure in the Norwegian choral movement." His most famous work was "Foran Sydens kloster" (Ung Magnus og Foran sydens kloster), a cantata for male choir. He also conducted the first performances of several choral works by Edvard Grieg. In 1870, he dropped out of his studies in theology to take up singing. He studied in Cologne under (1873) and at the Leipzig Conservatory. In 1878 he founded a mixed choir. He was the husband of the pianist and composer Agatha Bakker-Graendal, whom he married in June 1875, having met in Germany. In the early 1900s he was the conductor of the men's choir of the Royal Norwegian University in Oslo.
