Our Finnish Music Day concert presents Kalevala-inspired music by Uuno Klami, who was encouraged by Robert Kajanus to take up the national epic in the 1930s. Soprano Iris Candelaria makes her debut as the orchestra's soloist, performing an atmospheric series of orchestral songs by Sibelius.
Einojuhani Rautavaara (1928–2016) composed his Requiem in Our Time in 1953, as an entry in the US Thor Johnson competition for a work for brass instruments. It was performed at the competition’s finals in Cincinnati and awarded the first prize. Rautavaara was at the time a conscript in the Finnish army but later, with a recommendation from Jean Sibelius, his victory helped to gain him an opportunity to study in the USA. He dedicated his Requiem to the memory of his mother, who had died when he was 16.
The closing Lacrymosa already looks towards the leisurely stroll through the land of beauty characteristic of Rautavaara’s later music.
The four-movement Requiem begins with a resolute Hymnus. The following Credo et Dubito contrasts a devout chorale with music that is nothing short of sardonic and is in fact an arrangement of a movement from his Fiddlers suite. Dies Irae is a savage, angry scherzo. The closing Lacrymosa already looks towards the leisurely stroll through the land of beauty characteristic of Rautavaara’s later music.
The colourful, rhythmical and Neoclassical style of Uuno Klami (1900–1961) differed from that of, say, fellow-Finn Jean Sibelius. But like Sibelius, Klami felt a pull towards the myths and legends of his homeland and above all its national epic, The Kalevala. His greatest work inspired by the epic is the Kalevala Suite he composed on the suggestion of Robert Kajanus, founder of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. Klami once said of his suite: “I did my best here, as in my other works, to avoid the melancholy and profound gloominess for which Finnish music has, especially abroad, been severely criticised.” And indeed, this suite cannot be described as gloomy. The opening The Creation of the Earth, initially shrouded in mystery before erupting in a big bang, is followed without a break by the calmly melodic The Sprout of Spring. Terhenniemi, a sunny scherzo, leads to A Cradle Song for Lemminkäinen (one of the epic’s leading characters), and the closing Forging of the Sampo (the source or prosperity in The Kalevala) brings the suite to a resounding conclusion.
Yes, but only before or after the concert. During the concert we just want you to enjoy the music. This way you won’t disturb the musicians or other audience members.
Only the orchestra has a dress code. You can dress as you like.
You can give the ticket to a friend or donate it to a music student by calling 09-3102 2700 or sending an e-mail to helsinki.philharmonic@hel.fi by 3pm on the day of the concert.
