The virtuoso trumpet playing of Sweden's Håkan Hardenberger has inspired many new works for the instrument. Hardenberger has a large recording catalog and is generally regarded as one of the world's leading trumpeters. His recording career began in 1985 with The Virtuoso Trumpet, an album of 20th century works on which he was accompanied by pianist Roland Pöntinen. Hardenberger soon released several albums of standard trumpet repertory. Hardenberger has commissioned new works from a wide variety of contemporary composers, working in many different styles. Between concerts, he teaches trumpet at the University of Malmö. He released the album French Trumpet Concertos in 2022. By that time, his recording catalog comprised some 30 items.