Classic Ross Amico

Tag: Finlandia

Sibelius Finland’s Musical Hero

Well, “8 Days of Sibelius” got away from me.

I intended to post Day 6 when I got back from a concert in Philadelphia on Friday (for which I had to be there extra early), but then I got stuck there until extra late. Yesterday, Day 7, I already had a baseline of three posts – two to promote my radio shows, “Sweetness and Light” and “The Lost Chord,” and another to acknowledge Pearl Harbor Day – and then I simply got too busy and was unable to contribute a fourth.

In order to keep up, what I really needed was a good snowstorm. But as it is, this year, you’re only getting 6 Days of Sibelius.

How important is Jean Sibelius to Finland? December 8, the composer’s birthday, is a national holiday. The Finnish flag is flown everywhere and the date is celebrated as a Day of Finnish Music. I can’t think of a single artist here in the United States we revere on anywhere near the same level. But of course, for the Finns Sibelius is a source of national pride for multiple reasons, not least because of his importance to the cause of Finnish independence.

Yle Klassinen, now my classical music station of choice, is playing all Finnish music today. Keep in mind, they’re seven hours ahead of New Jersey, so at the time I’m posting this, it’s already late afternoon there. You can stream the audio online or, if you have a digital radio (like me), enjoy it in that fashion. If the playlist doesn’t come up in English for you, there should be a translate function, when you visit the website.

Here’s the homepage:

https://areena.yle.fi/podcastit/ohjelmat/57-llL6Y4blL

The current playlist:

https://areena.yle.fi/podcastit/1-72178759

A very happy birthday to Jean Sibelius. My life is so much the richer for his music.

Sibelius honored in Helsinki with the crowd singing his “Finlandia Hymn” for the 150th anniversary of his birth in 2015

Inspiring video set to “Finlandia” celebrating Finland’s natural wonders – and of course Sibelius’ wondrous music!

December 8, 2024
Sibelius Footage & a Personal Connection

A day late and a dollar short. The story of my life!

The day after Jean Sibelius’ birthday anniversary, there’s plenty of cigar smoke in this six minutes of historic footage of the composer and his family, in and around their home, Ainola, located about 20 miles outside Helsinki.

I had the good fortune to enjoy a friendship with one of the composer’s grandchildren, the son of Heidi (featured at the link), when he was living in Philadelphia and later, believe it or not, my hometown of Easton, PA!

Anssi Blomstedt, a documentary filmmaker, now makes his home back in Helsinki. He also directed a feature film, “Axel” (1990), about Sibelius’ friendship with Axel Carpelan. It was Carpelan who suggested the name “Finlandia” for what became Sibelius’ most famous composition, and Sibelius dedicated his most frequently-performed symphony, the Symphony No. 2, to him.

The film is based on a novel, “Axel,” by Bo Carpelan, who was the subject’s great-nephew. Come to think of it, Anssi gave me a copy of the book, and it occurs to me that I never read it. Perhaps I’ll add it to my January reading list.

Speaking of “Finlandia,” if you’ve never seen this, you owe it to yourself to watch it. You won’t be sorry. In fact, it will probably make you want to move to Finland.

December 9, 2022
Sibelius’s Finlandia: Ukraine Solidarity at Russian Embassy

Sibelius at the Russian embassy! Finnish protesters sing the “Finlandia Hymn,” substituting “Ukraina” for “Suomi” (Finland).

Historically, Finland is all too familiar with life under Russian occupation. “Finlandia,” composed in 1899 (rev. 1900), was banned from performance by the Russian authorities for stirring nationalistic fervor. (Finland was part of the Russian Empire from 1809.) In its early days, Sibelius’ most flagrant expression of Finnish patriotism was presented under many names, in order to circumvent the censors. The work was first performed in Helsinki on July 2, 1900. Finland formally declared its independence from Russia on December 6, 1917.

The ”Finlandia Hymn” is a reworking by the composer of the serene, hymn-like interlude of his popular symphonic poem. It has been embraced by the Finnish people as the country’s unofficial anthem.

Hundreds of Finns gather to sing the “Finlandia Hymn” in 2015 for Sibelius’ 150th birthday:

Sung during the pandemic by the Sibelius High School Chamber Choir:

The symphonic poem “Finlandia” given the full treatment, in a stirring presentation, complemented by Northern Lights, imposing forests, and stunning wildlife footage. Nine minutes well-spent.

PHOTO: A further display of solidarity in Helsinki’s Senaatintori (Senate Square) on April 18

May 17, 2022
Sibelius at 155 A Finnish Hero’s Legacy

EIGHT DAYS OF SIBELIUS – DAY 8

Well, today is the day. The 155th anniversary of the birth of Jean Sibelius.

The Sibelius legacy is an interesting one. In Finland, he is regarded as a national hero – so much more than a composer – since essentially, he provided the soundtrack for Finnish independence. His image has adorned statues, stamps, and currency. Finnish Flag Day is even celebrated on his birthday (December 8).

Outside of Finland, Sibelius’ reputation has been a little spottier, his path to the pantheon a bit more circuitous. Broadly speaking, he has fared better in England and the Commonwealth, the United States and, naturally, Scandinavia. In Germany and France, much less so. In the modernist era, his music became regarded in some circles as a hopeless throwback. Here was a tonal composer who, in his naiveté, still wrote tunes! René Leibowitz went so far as to call him “the worst composer in the world.”

There are still some who remain deaf to Sibelius’ charms, and blind to his significance. But in his way, he was every bit as innovative – and every bit as subversive – as Stravinsky or Schoenberg. Like Franz Liszt before him, the great Finn blazed his own trail, rejecting forms that had been developed over generations, particularly those of German origin, to reinvent the symphony, in a manner that would become recognized as wholly characteristic of the North.

Few composers’ music has been so tied-up with the spirit of their homeland. Sibelius came of age at a time when artists of the “provincial” countries of Europe began to chafe against imperial domination, and to assert their own national identities. Sibelius loved Finland. He loved its history. He certainly loved its natural beauty.

All this is reflected in his most famous piece, the tone poem “Finlandia,” his most flagrant expression of Finnish patriotism, performed under many names in its early days, in order to circumvent the Russian censors. The work was first heard in Helsinki on July 2, 1900. The conductor on that occasion was Sibelius’ good friend Robert Kajanus.

YOU OWE IT TO YOURSELF TO WATCH THIS EXCEPTIONAL VIDEO! “Finlandia” is given a stirring presentation, complemented by Northern Lights, imposing forests, and stunning wildlife footage. I guarantee it will be nine minutes of your day well-spent. An inspiring visual interpretation that breathes new life into an overplayed favorite.

The serene melody at the heart of “Finlandia” is often heard separately as the “Finlandia Hymn.” Though not the Finnish national anthem, it is basically the Finnish national song. Listen to this lovely performance, recorded in November, by the Sibelius High School Chamber Choir. In this case, social distancing need not mean isolation.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEAN SIBELIUS!

PHOTO: “Passio Musicae” (1967) by Eila Hiltunen, the Sibelius Monument in Helsinki

December 8, 2020
Celebrating Sibelius A Finnish Master at 150

December 8th marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Finnish master Jean Sibelius. Since he may very well be my favorite composer (or at any rate, he’s right up there), I will be devoting the entire playlist tomorrow morning on WPRB to his magnificent music, in outstanding performances from the 1930s to the present.

Featured conductors will include Sir John Barbirolli, Sir Thomas Beecham, Sir Colin Davis, Neeme Järvi, Robert Kajanus, Herbert von Karajan, Serge Koussevitzky, Eugene Ormandy, Leopold Stokowski and Osmo Vänskä. I’ll also include a lovingly-performed rarity from a new CD with JoAnn Falletta and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra.

The influence of Sibelius on the establishment of a Finnish national identity cannot be underestimated. He is venerated in Finland as we in the United States venerate the Founding Fathers, though with considerably more passion and a sense of personal connection. Monuments to Sibelius abound, and his name is on public buildings. Why should this be so?

After seven centuries under Swedish rule, Finland was “liberated” by the Russians in 1809. In its new role, Finland served as an autonomous Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire. At times, relations between the two could become palpably tense.

It was the emergence of the Kalevala, compiled in the mid-19th century by Elias Lönnrot from oral traditions, that lit a spark in the frozen north. Here were heroic tales of Finland’s distant past. It brought to a head the issue of Swedish yet being the dominant language of Finland and contributed to a snowballing sense of nationalism that resulted in Finnish independence from Russia in 1917.

Along the way, Sibelius had become the movement’s most dangerous torch-bearer. Like other Finnish artists of the time, he turned to the Kalevala for inspiration, bringing a number of the tales vibrantly to life in his music. But it was “Finlandia” that proved the true firebrand. So directly did it speak to the Finnish heart that performances of the work were banned by the Russian authorities, so that the piece could only be programmed covertly under alternative names like “Happy Feelings at the Awakening of Finnish Spring.”

However, his importance to music transcends the provincial concerns of a small northern country. Sibelius offered a fresh and original path from Romanticism into the 20th century. While Stravinsky and Schoenberg duked it out on the world stage, Sibelius crept quietly like a frost from the north to invigorate the hearts of listeners and stimulate the creativity of (some) composers.

The perception at first, with the rise of rhythmic complexity and the breakdown of tonality, was that Sibelius was a conservative throwback, and not to be taken seriously, but time has proven otherwise. His music took root mainly in the Nordic countries, England, and the United States, went underground somewhat at mid-century, then emerged as an essential part of the repertoire of virtually every major conductor and orchestra.

Even so, he is easily misunderstood. His music is organic, bold, enigmatic and idiosyncratic, often rugged and austere on the surface, but with a soft, warm glow emanating from deep within. I find it irresistible.

I hope you’ll join me tomorrow morning from 6 to 11 ET, on WPRB 103.3 FM or at wprb.com, when it will be all-Sibelius. We’ll be conjuring heroes and magicians, and brooding with migratory birds amidst the snow-capped pines, on Classic Ross Amico.

December 2, 2015

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