Sibelius: 13 Pieces, Op. 76: II. Etude (piano) Sheet music partitura partition noten spartiti 乐谱 楽譜
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About Sibelius:
It can be said that he is the most important composer Finland has ever produced. In his symphonic cycle, he develops a strong and distinctive personality, which, starting from German Romanticism, rises through his nationalist contributions to a unique style, separate from all the modernist currents of his time.
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Jean Sibelius (1865-1957) was born on December 8, 1865, in Hämeenlinna, called Tavastehus in Swedish, the capital of the Southern Finland region (Etelë-Suomi) . It was a small military town located about 100 kilometers north of Helsinki. At that time, the Grand Duchy of Finland was part of the Russian Empire, until 1917 when it declared its independence, taking advantage of the turbulent political situation of the time, as described in the section on Finland in the previous volume.
Sibelius’s father, a doctor, died when the boy was only three years old, forcing him, due to financial circumstances, to live with his mother at his grandmother’s house. He soon showed a talent for music, writing his first work for violin and cello, Vattendroppar (Water Drops), in 1875. He began his violin studies with the local conductor, Gustav Levander. In 1885, he entered the University of Helsinki to study law, but a year later he left to dedicate himself to music. He studied at the Helsinki Music Institute, now the Sibelius Academy, with Martin Wegelius (1846–1906). He continued composing works, including his Quartet in A minor, premiered on May 29, 1889.
At the Institute, he met Armas Järnefelt (1869-1958), who became a conductor specializing in opera, as well as a composer. In the winter of 1889, Armas took his colleague to his family home. There, Sibelius met his sister Aino, with whom he soon fell in love. Aino Järnefelt was the daughter of General Alexander Järnefelt, head of one of the most influential families in Finland, a connection that would prove beneficial to his career.
The Järnefelt family descended from a German military family that moved to Sweden in the 16th century and then to Karelia, Finland, in the 18th century. Alexander Järnefelt studied at the artillery academy in Saint Petersburg, where he fell in love with Elisabeth Clodt von Jürgensburg, from a noble Estonian family that had produced a large number of artists. They married in 1857 and had nine children, all artistically talented. They settled in Pulkova, near Saint Petersburg. In 1870, they moved to Helsinki (Helsingfors in Swedish). Both spouses belonged to the Fennomans movement.
The Fennomans were the most important political movement in 19th-century Finland. In an era dominated by Swedish as the official and cultured language, Finnish was spoken only by rural people. The Fennomans founded the Finnish Party after the Crimean War, fighting to elevate Finnish to the status of the national language and foster a Finnish national culture. Many Swedish speakers enrolled their children in Finnish schools to ensure that Finnish became their mother tongue. The Fennomans ‘ slogan was: “We will never be Swedish again, we will never become Russian, let us be Finnish.” The opposing party was the Svecomans , supporters of Sweden and aligned with the Germanic world. Ultimately, a synthesis of their ideals was achieved, resulting in Finland becoming a bilingual country.
As one might expect, the Järnefeldts raised their children with nationalist ideals, sending them to Finnish-speaking schools. The development of Finnish culture was considered by the Järnefeldt family to be their most important goal. Aino’s mother, Elizabeth, maintained a close friendship with the young Juhani Aho (1861–1921), an important Finnish writer whose ideas also captivated Aino herself. When Aino met Sibelius, Juhani Aho’s affection shifted from her mother to her daughter, but he had to leave for Paris as a press correspondent for the 1889 World’s Fair. Aho lived in Paris from the autumn of 1889 until the summer of 1890.
When Aino was wavering about her feelings, Aho wrote a novel titled Yksin (Alone) (1890). It told a dubious love story set in Paris. The protagonist spends a night with a prostitute, a scene that caused quite a stir. Sibelius, who was in Vienna at the time, read the novel and ruined his Christmas. He recognized his girlfriend Aino among the characters. Although she also received and read a copy of the manuscript, it didn’t change her feelings for the author. She became engaged to Jean Sibelius, whom she married in the summer of 1892. In 1891, Aho married the artist Venny Soldan-Brofeld.
Sibelius studied counterpoint in Berlin, recommended by his teacher Wegelius, with Albert Becker in 1889. There he became acquainted with Wagner’s music and heard his friend Robert Kajanus’s symphonic poem “Aino ,” written in 1885 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Kalevala. Kajanus conducted the poem with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in February 1890. This work awakened Sibelius’s nationalist inspiration, leading him to write many works inspired by the legends of the Kalevala. Sibelius had met Kajanus while studying at the Helsinki Music Institute, and they maintained a close friendship. Robert Kajanus (1856-1933) had founded the Helsinki Orchestral Society, from which the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra was born, which would premiere many of Sibelius’s works.
When Sibelius returned to his homeland in 1890, he became engaged to Aino Järnefeldt. He then traveled to Austria, studying in Vienna with Karl Goldmark and Robert Fuchs until June 1891. There he began the outline of the Kullervo Symphony , based on the legends of the Kalevala .
Finnish is a language belonging to the Finno-Ugric language family. Originating in the Ural Mountains of Russia, these languages once spread throughout Europe and Asia, but have since lost ground to the Germanic and Slavic languages with which they coexisted. This language family comprises two distinct groups: the Finnish group, whose most prominent languages are Finnish and Estonian, and the Ugric group, from the Ob region, which includes Hungarian.
We dedicate this section to Karelia due to its importance in Sibelius’s work. Karelia, whose real name is Karelija , comprises the territories located east of Finland, whose inhabitants speak Finnish. It includes the Barents Sea in the north, including the Kola Peninsula. After intense struggles between Swedes and Russians for its control, the Treaty of Nöteborg in 1323 divided Karelia in two, with Vyborg becoming the capital of Swedish Karelia. After the Great Northern War (1700-1721), between the Swedes and their Russian allies, Sweden ceded most of Karelia to the Russia of Peter the Great through the Treaty of Nystadt. In 1809, Finland became part of the Russian Empire until its independence in 1917, but most of Karelia remained under Russian control, despite Finnish efforts to reclaim it. After the establishment of the Soviet Union in 1922, the Russian part of Karelia became the Karelian Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. As a result of World War II, Finnish Karelia lost its most important city, Vyborg. In 1991, the Republic of Karelia was created within the Russian Federation.
Finnish folk culture had been relegated for centuries by the Swedish administration. The bards, the people’s poets, were the custodians of their people’s traditions and legends. They sang accompanied by a small zither called a kantele. Elias Lönnrot (1806-1884) collected this lyrical and epic work in two collections. In the Kanteletar (1841), he compiled the lyrical songs. But his most important work was the Kalevala (1835), a collection of legendary songs of folk origin, collected from the Karelian bards, which express the Finnish national epic. This work was one of the inspirations for Finnish nationalism in achieving independence from Russia in 1917.
The name Kalevala means “land of Kaleva is generally .” Kaleva interpreted as southern Finland and Pohjola as Lapland. Some scholars locate the land of Kaleva in eastern Karelia. In 1961, the small village of Uhtua in eastern Karelia was renamed Kalevala, perhaps to promote this theory. But others believe it refers to Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, known in ancient Russian texts as Kolyvan .
The work, in its second edition published in 1849, is divided into 50 poems or runes . In Finnish, a poem is called a runo . The work is an epic with characters endowed with extraordinary powers, who experience adventures through which the author communicates his philosophical conception of the universe. He brought together all the legends into a single, continuous work. The main character is Väinämöinen, a shaman who contributes to the creation of the world. The work contains many protagonists who would later appear in Sibelius’s works. Examples include Kullervo and Lemminkäinen. Similarities to the main character can be found today in the wizards of The Lord of the Rings.
Sibelius returned to his homeland and dedicated himself to teaching. In November 1891, he traveled to Porvoo, about 50 km east of Helsinki, to hear the Karelian rune singer Larin Paraske. Runes were the script used by the ancient Scandinavians. Rune songs are ancient folk songs. This experience would influence his future work, leading him to incorporate folk music into his compositions as a symbol of Finnish nationalism. However, he never used exact copies of these songs; instead, they served as a stylistic source of inspiration.
In the spring of 1892, Sibelius conducted his first major symphonic work, Kullervo , for soloists, chorus, and orchestra in Helsinki. This work, divided into several movements, straddles the line between symphony and symphonic poem. Due to its significance, we dedicate a special commentary to it.
“Kullervo,” Op. 7, was completed in April 1892. Although Sibelius thought in symphonic terms, he didn’t call it a Symphony but a Symphonic Poem, due to its descriptive nature and the use of soloists and chorus. But the main reason was that he didn’t dare to compose a true symphony. In fact, the composer himself withdrew it from programs shortly after its premiere on April 28, 1892, at the Helsinki University Auditorium, despite its success in establishing him as the great Finnish nationalist composer. The work wasn’t performed again until 1958, after Sibelius’s death.
The first movement , Introduction, Allegro moderato , is purely orchestral. The first theme is reminiscent of Bruckner’s Third Symphony, but its repetition possesses Sibelius’s typical style. The second thematic group is introduced by the horn after a chord. This theme transforms during the development into a melody with a distinctly Finnish folk feel, characteristic of the composer. The recapitulation ends with a brass fanfare based on the first theme, which abruptly stops, followed by fading motifs in the woodwinds.
The work is based on poems 31 to 36 of the Kalevala, which tell the story of Kullervo. In this movement, Sibelius portrays him as a hero immersed in tragedy. The expansive first theme reveals the epic grandeur of the hero, followed by the more tragic second theme.
The second movement, entitled “Kullervo’s Youth ,” is the symphony’s slow movement. The main theme is laden with pessimism, perhaps foreshadowing Kulllervo’s tragic fate. Written in the form of a ballad, it also contains reminiscences of runic themes. The atmosphere becomes mysterious before a contrasting, faster-paced episode, featuring the woodwinds, appears in the middle section, but the oppressive atmosphere that characterizes the hero’s life from his youth persists. The final section presents a strongly romantic scene, interrupted by loud calls from the wind, before the initial theme reappears to conclude the movement.
It narrates the tragic life of Kullervo, who lives with his uncle, responsible for his father’s death, and who later sells him into slavery to the blacksmith Ilmarinen. These first two movements would be those of a conventional symphony, but in the third movement, the choruses and vocal soloists are introduced, making it the most important part of the work and departing from the classical symphonic form.
The third movement, entitled “Kulervo and His Sister ,” introduces a male chorus, a soprano, and a baritone. The narrative corresponds to poem rune 35 of the Kalevala. Kullervo is no longer a slave; he dresses like a powerful knight. Riding in his sleigh, he returns from a journey to pay his taxes. He encounters a girl with flowing blond hair on the road, stops, and tries to entice her into his sleigh. The atmosphere is completely different from that of the previous movement. The orchestra, through an energetic theme in the strings, depicts the arrogant Kullervo, traveling in his sleigh pulled by a spirited horse, on his way home. The male chorus narrates the scene with a powerful, unison ostinato . A dialogue then begins between Kullervo and the girl, sung by the baritone and soprano in an almost operatic style, with commentary from the male chorus. The man is unable to persuade the girl to get into his sleigh. Later, he finds a second girl, and the same thing happens. But on the third encounter, he succeeds. Fascinated by the richness of the dresses he shows her, by the gleaming gold that overwhelms her, the girl is finally corrupted by the power of money. At this moment, the chorus falls silent, and the seduction scene is described by the orchestra alone, in an intense and realistic way.
At the end of the love scene, they both question their origins, leading to the tragic scene of discovery. In a long monologue, sung by the soprano, they discover they are siblings. The young woman reminisces about her childhood, wishing she were dead, and finally, in an act of despair, commits suicide. Sibelius creates a very convincing musical accompaniment to the narrative. In the movement’s final section, Kullervo sings a powerful lament, accompanied by strong orchestral chords that heighten the tragedy. As a linguistic curiosity, we reproduce one of the phrases sung by Kullervo in this final section.
Minnekä minua loitte , Why have you raised me?
Where did you bring the Catalan? Criado para ser tan desgraciado?
We find that the Finnish word katalan means unfortunate. We can draw our own conclusions. Has the Catalan people suffered oppression similar to that of the Finnish people?
The fourth movement is titled Kullervo Goes to War . The music is impetuous, in march rhythm. Kullervo goes to war to avenge himself on his uncle Untamo. The music is again purely orchestral and is in rondo form. It corresponds to poem 36 of the Kalevala. In the first theme, Kullervo bids farewell to his family. Then he marches off to battle. The wind and percussion periodically underscore the scene. But there are also more relaxed moments. It ends with a powerful burst of wind accompanied by percussion.
The final movement is titled “Kullervo’s Death .” It again employs the male chorus. The narrative is tragic, as reflected in the accompanying music. After defeating his uncle, the one responsible for all his misfortunes, he returns by chance to the place where he seduced the girl, where he dishonored his mother’s daughter, and can only free himself from his guilt by committing suicide with his own sword, a gift from the god Ukko. The movement consists of a long crescendo . It begins with the entrance of the chorus singing mysteriously in a psalm-like style. The music increases in intensity as the men recount Kulllervo’s suicide. Themes reminiscent of the hero’s youth appear. Finally, the wind theme from the introduction reappears solemnly, accompanying the chorus’s final words in an almost Wagnerian manner.
It was the death of a young man,
Kuolo Kullervo urohon, Kullervo, the hero, dies thus.
Loppu ainakin urosta, Thus ends the life of the hero,
Kuolema kovaosaista. Thus died the unfortunate hero.
Kalevala, Poem 36
With these words the circle is closed, the work is finished. Sibelius had achieved his first success in the field of symphonic music.
Six weeks after the premiere of Kullervo, Sibelius married his fiancée Aino Järnefelt, and they honeymooned in Karelia, where he continued to explore runic songs. The conductor Robert Kajanus, a great champion of Sibelius’s music, commissioned a new symphonic work. On December 10, 1892, he completed the symphonic poem “En Saga,” Op. 9, derived from earlier compositions. The final work premiered to great acclaim in Helsinki on February 16, 1893. The piece is structured as a modified sonata movement. Its title, written in Swedish, means “tale” and was apparently inspired by the work of the Swiss painter Arnold Böcklin.
Following his nationalist ideals, his next work, written in 1893, was Karelia . It was incidental music composed for the Viipuri (Viborg) Student Association of Imperial Alexander University. The original title was “Viipurilaisen osakunnan juhla-arpajaiset” (Incidental Music for a Festival and Lottery for Educational Aid in the Province of Viipuri). The occasion was a festival to raise funds for improving the cultural and social standing of the impoverished regions of eastern Karelia. It’s worth noting that at that time, all of Finland was under the rule of the Tsar, a situation that displeased Finnish nationalists.
The ideology behind the performance was to reinforce Finnish culture in the border regions with Russia. It depicted the construction of the medieval castle of Viipuri, built by the Swedish commissar Tyrgils Knutsson, who partnered with the Finns to defend against the Russians of Novgorod. The work premiered on November 13, 1893, at Helsinki City Hall. Through a series of tableaux, it describes scenes from Karelian history in the form of a theatrical production. Sibelius again attributed the work’s success not to its music but to nationalist sentiments. He destroyed parts of it for this reason, which have since been restored. The music is strongly epic, featuring Karelian runic ballads and chivalric scenes, extolling the Karelian people and their language. Its overture was published separately as “Karelia Overture,” Op. 10, and three of its orchestral parts were combined to form the “Karelia Suite,” Op. 11.
In the same year, Sibelius began to take an interest in Finnish nationalist opera, attempting to enter a competition. He started a work entitled “Veenen luominen” (The Building of the Ship). After a year, he abandoned the project, finding his style too close to Wagner. Using some of his musical ideas, he created a suite, the “Lemminkäinen Suite,” Op. 22. Sibelius’s original title was “Symphonic Poems on Motifs from the Lemminkäinen Myth.” The legends themselves are drawn from the Kalevala.
The overture to the discarded opera became one of the pieces of the work, perhaps the best known to the public, “The Swan of Tuonela.” Once again, Sibelius was influenced by the paintings of the Swiss symbolist Böcklin, with his imagery of swans, water, and death. Böcklin’s painting, Island of the Dead, also served as inspiration for Rachmaninoff’s “Isle of the Dead . “
The work premiered in April 1896 but was revised several times, first in 1897 and then again in 1900. In 1937, one of its parts underwent another revision. Lemminkäinen is one of the heroes of the Kalevala. A handsome and arrogant man, his mother had to rescue his body from the river of death that was carrying it toward Tuonela, the land of the dead. Tuonela is a kind of hell in Finnish mythology. It is surrounded by a great river of black water upon which floats the Swan of Tuonela.
The first legend, Lemminkäinen and the Maidens of the Island , is inspired by Rune 29 of the Kalevala. It recounts Lemminkäinen’s journey to the land of Saari, where, like a kind of Nordic Don Juan, he tries to win the hearts of the maidens. He seeks out the most beautiful of them, Kyllikki, and when she repeatedly rejects him, he returns to his homeland.
Secondly, we find the famous “Swan of Tuonela,” which has been discussed previously. In 1947, Sibelius finally decided that this movement would occupy the second position; it had previously been performed in third. We will only add that the English horn solo is reminiscent of Wagner’s Lohengrin and also the beginning of Act III of Tristan und Isolde. The swan’s association with death led the depressive King Ludwig II of Bavaria to decorate his castles with them, and, as we recall, he perished by drowning in one of the lakes.
The third legend is titled Lemminkäinen in Tuonela . To win the daughter of the North, Lemminkäinen must kill the swan of Tuonela, but he is the one who dies in an ambush set by the son of the Lord of Tuonela. He cuts his corpse into eight pieces and throws them into the river of Tuonela. His mother finds them and, thanks to her magic powers, brings him back to life.
The final part is titled The Return of Lemminkäinen . Exhausted from the battles, Lemminkäinen decides to return home. After an adventure-filled journey, he rediscovers the places of his childhood. He recognizes the value of his homeland and, having overcome the horrors he experienced in the previous campaigns, he comes to love his country, reminding the Finns of the importance of patriotism.
In the spring of 1894, Sibelius substituted for Richard Faltin (1835-1918), the music professor at the University of Helsinki, during his absence. For the University, he composed his first cantata, the “Cantata for the Graduation Ceremony of 1894.” Faltin retired in the spring of 1896, and Sibelius was again appointed assistant professor until the university council decided on a permanent replacement. In the spring of that same year, he was asked to write a new cantata, this time in honor of Tsar Nicholas II, Grand Duke of Finland. This was the “Coronation Cantata,” which premiered on November 2, 1896. It expressed the Finnish people’s hope for freedom, but expectations were not met, and the Tsar attempted to Russify the country. Apparently, the premiere of this work was not very well received. His second failure was the premiere on November 9 of his only opera “Jungfrun i tornet” (The Maiden in the Tower), a short one-act opera he had written during the summer, with a text in Swedish.
As an assistant professor, Sibelius delivered the inaugural lecture of the academic year on November 25, 1896, entitled “Some Remarks on Folk Music and Its Influence on the Art of Composition.” In the following sentence, taken from his speech, he reveals his musical aesthetic: “You cannot tear down the old building if there is nothing to put in its place. This cannot be achieved by constructing a completely new tonal system; it must be found alive in folk music.” Sibelius preferred to work within tonality as a new means of expression based on traditional music.
Surprisingly, a new candidate came forward to fill the chair vacated by Professor Faltin. It was his friend Robert Kajanus, the founder of the Helsinki Orchestra, with which Sibelius had premiered his symphonic works. According to Faltin’s report, Sibelius was presented as Finland’s most important composer, and the University was proud to have him among its members. After the bureaucratic procedures and the vote—25 for Sibelius and 3 for Kajanus—the appointment seemed clear.
On July 29, 1897, a surprise occurred: contrary to expectations, Kajanus was appointed full professor by Rector Woldemar von Daehn. Rumors circulated that Kajanus, dissatisfied with the vote’s outcome, had traveled to St. Petersburg to speak with the Rector, who had been appointed by Russia. But the result of this maneuver ultimately benefited Sibelius and perhaps the history of music and its admirers.
The Finnish Senate, recognizing the injustice suffered by the composer, requested an annual pension for a period of ten years. Supported by the Rector himself, the Tsar granted him the pension in January 1898. When the ten years were over, the pension became permanent until his death. This brought his teaching position to an end, allowing him to dedicate his time to composition. Many of his major premieres took place in the Great Hall of the University of Helsinki, which was regularly used by the Philharmonic Orchestra, later to become the Helsinki City Orchestra.
In February 1898, he premiered the incidental music for Adolf Paul’s play, “Kung Kristian II” (King Christian II), at the Swedish Theatre in Helsinki. His first daughter, Kirsti, was born but died in 1900. A period of repression began in Finland when Nikolai Ivanovich Bobrikov was appointed Governor-General of the Grand Duchy of Finland. He was later assassinated in 1904 by a Finnish patriot.
The year 1899 would prove pivotal in Sibelius’s life. In February, Russia published the February Manifesto , which drastically curtailed Finland’s autonomy, restricting freedom of speech and assembly. It also made Russian a compulsory second language in schools and prohibited freedom of the press. Sibelius, whose nationalist leanings are well known, became a composer of protest. He wrote “Atenarnes sång” (Song of the Athenians) for chorus, winds, and percussion, later published as Op. 31/3, whose text expresses a deep sense of struggle for freedom. In the same year, he composed “Islossning i Ulea alv” (The Thaw on the Ulea River), also written in Swedish, a work for narrator, chorus, and orchestra that celebrates Finnish patriotism. At that time, Swedish and Finnish speakers united to fight for their national rights against Russia.
The Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Op. 39, was written in 1898, at the beginning of the Russian oppression, and premiered on April 26, 1899, just two months after the Russian Manifesto . The same program also included the “Athens Song ,” which was very well received by the nationalists, whom it called to arms. The symphony was similarly well received; although not a programmatic work, its music possessed a distinctly nationalistic character.
The first movement, andante ma non troppo, allegro energico, begins with a melancholic clarinet melody over a restrained timpani roll. The strings then enter, presenting the first theme of the allegro, a lively one. The second theme appears pianissimo with tremolos in the violins and syncopation in the harp. The exposition ends with a crescendo featuring the bass tuba. The development section follows, leading to the classic repetition of themes in the recapitulation. A long crescendo then leads to the coda.
The second movement, Andante, ma non troppo lento , is written in the tripartite form of a lied. The theme is romantic, expressed warmly. The central section contains a counterpoint for bassoons, which, according to Sibelius, has a strong Finnish flavor. This section includes a long development that builds to a furious allegro. It ends with the lyrical melody of the main theme slowly fading away.
The third movement is the scherzo . It begins rhythmically with a repetitive theme, underscored by the timpani. The central section is the trio , which has a calm character with solos from the horns and flute. But the rhythmic first section soon returns, closing the movement.
The final movement , Andante, Allegro molto, is described by its composer as quasi una fantasia. It begins with the strings playing the clarinet theme with which the work opened. After a tranquil, tragic section, ending with dramatic calls, the clarinets introduce a melodious, noble theme, which is then taken up by the entire orchestra. But contrary to expectations, the tragic atmosphere returns with calls from the brass that seem to incite battle, solidifying the work’s stormy tone. The lyrical theme reappears, warmly played by the orchestra, a theme reminiscent of Tchaikovsky. But as if paying tribute to the Russian composer, the work ends tragically with powerful wind chords accompanied by percussion.
Although there is no programmatic explanation, we can see this work as formally patriotic, celebrating the bitter resistance of the Finnish people and trying to awaken them to fight for their rights.
In response to the Russians’ decision to restrict freedom of expression by closing four Finnish newspapers, the Finnish press organized a massive protest on November 5, 1899. Among the activities scheduled for the evening before, a gala was held at the Swedish Theatre. The highlight of the performance was a series of historical scenes. For these scenes, Sibelius composed the music, “Musiikkia Sanomalehdiston paivien juhlanaytantoon ” (Music for Collecting Pensions for the Press), also known as “Music for the Press Gala.” The music comprises a prelude and incidental music to accompany the different parts of the performance, including various patriotic scenes. It is interesting to note the music accompanying the third scene, the court scene of Duke Johan. It is written in the Spanish bolero style. But the most important part of the work is the sixth and final scene, entitled ” Finland Awakens .” This well-known piece includes a hymn that would soon become famous as the Finnish national anthem.
Sibelius extracted three numbers from this work and incorporated them into the first suite of “Scènes historiques,” Op. 25. Among them was the Bolero, which he used in its final movement, Festivo . He modified the final scene, creating the symphonic poem “Suomi” (Finland), Op. 26, which he also arranged for male and mixed choir in later years, after Finland had become a free country. The choir sings a patriotic text in the anthem found in the penultimate section of the work. Incidentally, its music had been banned by the Russian government before independence, as it was considered a separatist anthem. Among the most notable changes made in the adaptation is that the final coda is less bombastic than in the original version, written for the theater.
At the beginning of 1901, Sibelius traveled to Italy with his family, specifically to Rapallo and then to Rome. There he began writing a symphonic poem based on Dante’s Divine Comedy . However, after abandoning this work, he retained several themes which he incorporated into a new symphony, his second.
The Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43, was completed in November 1901, but Sibelius later underwent extensive revisions. It premiered on March 8, 1902, in Helsinki, conducted by Sibelius himself. The work was a resounding success, and Sibelius became a national hero. It is his most famous symphony and a major post-Romantic work.
It is scored for pairs of flutes, oboes, clarinets and bassoons, four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani and the usual string section. A somewhat smaller orchestra than the one used in his first symphony.
The first movement, Allegretto , begins with the strings alone playing a swaying motif, followed by a cheerful theme introduced by the oboes and clarinets, bearing the composer’s distinctive mark. The second theme is lyrical and tranquil. Written in sonata form, it has a rather peculiar development, with a section in which flutes, clarinets, and oboes present their theme in a rather aggressive manner, due to its alternating pairs of notes, which Sibelius uses to introduce his climax with the expansive melodic form of his main theme. The recapitulation then begins with the initial theme of the oboes and clarinets. The movement ends with a diminuendo accompanied by the strings.
The second movement, tempo andante, ma rubato, begins soberly with pizzicato strings, before the pair of bassoons introduce a somber, crepuscular melody, accompanied by cellos and timpani. The violins enter with a romantic theme enlivened by the winds. The brass fanfares are abruptly halted by silences, creating a highly dramatic atmosphere. The quieter middle section comprises a series of variations on the theme, until the winds repeat their protest calls in a new climax . The movement ends, after a calmer episode, with a final protest call.
third movement The vivacissimo is the work’s scherzo. It is dominated by the frenetic rhythm imposed by the strings. This is interrupted by a silence, after which the trio appears with a slow melody introduced by the oboe. The initial string rhythm returns until the oboe again repeats its melodic theme, which, after being taken up by the orchestra, leads into the final movement.
It ends with an allegro moderato , without interruption from the previous movement. A profound melodic theme rises from the strings, punctuated by the timpani and trombone fanfares. The second theme, lyrical in character, is characteristic of Sibelius’s style. A tranquil development leads to a climax, in which the main theme is repeated in a solemn and highly romantic manner. After the recapitulation, an ostinato of the melody itself gradually builds to the coda, which concludes the work with great solemnity. Although some argue that it is not a patriotic work, due to its initial composition in Italy, we agree with the ideas put forward by Kajanus and would add that in the first movement, Sibelius paints a picture of the landscape and its people, truly presenting Finland to us.
The conductor Kajanus was enthusiastic about the work. He wrote a review in which he noted the protest inherent in its slow movement. the most poignant protest against all injustice, which currently threatens to deprive the sun of its light and our flowers of their fragrance It constitutes , in his own words, . He went on to say that the scherzo demonstrates the people’s unwavering will, with its trio explaining the reason for this activism. Finally, the last movement offers the audience hope for a brighter future, as indicated by its triumphant coda.
Sibelius composed a new cantata, “Tulen synty” (The Origin of Fire), Op. 32, for the opening of the Helsinki National Theatre on April 9, 1902. This new nationalist work was based on the Kalevala. The theft of fire can be interpreted as Russia’s attack on Finnish freedom. The triumphant ending of the work depicts its recovery by Finnish patriots.
Sibelius’s fame as a composer transcended borders, and he began to be known throughout Europe. By the summer of 1901, he had already been invited to conduct his own works at the Heidelberg Music Festival. In November 1902, he conducted in Berlin at the invitation of his friend Ferruccio Busoni, a former classmate.
Between 1903 and 1904, he wrote the first version of his “Violin Concerto in D minor,” Op. 47, the only concerto he ever composed. This work marked the beginning of a new period in his career as a composer. His style departed from his earlier output, dominated by wind instruments, and leaned toward a neoclassicism in which the strings predominated. Its premiere was not very convincing due to the soloist. Sibelius revised the concerto, and it premiered in October 1905 at the Singakademie in Berlin with the orchestra conducted by Richard Strauss.
In 1903, his daughter Katarina was born. That same year, he composed the incidental music for a play written by his brother-in-law, Arvid Järnefelt (1861-1931), entitled “Kuolema” (Death). The music, intended to accompany the play, is divided into six scenes, in which, in addition to the orchestra, a soprano and a baritone participate. The music for the first scene corresponds to what would later be known as “Valse triste” (Sad Waltz) . It accompanies a dying woman dreaming of a dance. When she awakens, the dance seems to come to life and intensifies, until the figure of Death arrives to take her away. In 1904, Sibelius recovered this piece from the play, created a new, longer version, and published it as the first movement of the “Kuolema” Suite , Op. 44. In 1906, he added a new version of the third scene to complete Op. 44, the scene known as the Cranes . In 1911 he completed the Suite with two new pieces published as Op.62.
It is truly sad to consider that there are people who only know Sibelius for a minor work such as his “Valse triste” and try to judge his production by this work, describing his music as immensely sad and its author as a bitter man.
In 1904, Sibelius left Helsinki to settle in his new home, Ainola , named after his wife Aino, in Järvenpää, a small town about fifty kilometers north of Helsinki. He was looking for a quieter place to compose, and he would live there for the remaining 53 years of his life.
In January 1905, he conducted his second symphony in Berlin, again at Busoni’s invitation, and was received as a great composer. While revising his violin concerto and working on a new symphony, relaxing at his country home, the Swedish Theatre in Helsinki commissioned him to compose music for a Swedish-language performance of the play “Pelléas et Mélisande” by the Belgian writer Maurice Maeterlinck (1862–1949). A revised version of this incidental music was published as a concert suite, “Pelléas et Mélisande,” Op. 46, in the same year .
In December, he was invited by the British composer Granville Bantock to present his works. In Liverpool, he conducted Bantock’s First Symphony and Finlandia , to great acclaim. The Royal Philharmonic Society commissioned him to compose a new symphony, his Third, to be premiered in 1907 under his direction.
On November 4, 1906, Sibelius premiered his incidental music for “Belsazar’s Feast” at the Swedish Theatre in Helsinki. The music was designed to accompany the play of the same name by Hjalmar Procope (1868–1927), a Swedish-speaking Finnish writer who supported Finnish independence and was a friend of Sibelius. The play was a resounding success, largely due to Sibelius’s music. The following year, he composed a suite of its principal excerpts, which premiered as Op. 51 on September 25, 1907.
In late 1906, at the invitation of Alexander Siloti, Sibelius traveled to St. Petersburg, where on December 29th he premiered “Pohjolan tytär,” Op. 49 (Pohjola’s Daughter), conducting the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra. The work, written at his home in Ainola, is dedicated to Robert Kajanus, who made his first recording of it in 1932. A symphonic poem based once again on the Kalevala, it tells the story of Väinämöinen, who returns from the North and encounters Pohjola’s daughter, the daughter of Lapland. He falls in love with her, but is unable to win her hand in marriage due to a series of impossible tasks.
The Symphony No. 3 in C major, Op. 52, was begun in 1904, and continuing the commission he received during his trip to England, he completed it in 1907, but behind schedule. It premiered in Helsinki on September 26, along with the Pohjolan tytär, Op. 49, a work he had already premiered in St. Petersburg, as previously mentioned. The same program also featured the premiere of the Suite from Belshazzar’s Guest, Op. 51. The symphony was finally performed in London in 1908 and dedicated to Granville Bantock.
He employs a more modest orchestra than that used in the great productions of his time: doubled woodwinds, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, timpani, and strings.
The first movement, allegro moderato , has two contrasting themes: the first, more energetic with Nordic timbres, introduced by the strings, and the second, more tranquil and lyrical in character. The exposition ends with a series of continuous scales. It is followed by a well-developed section that leads to the recapitulation, concluding with a rather solemn coda.
The second movement, an andantino con moto, quasi allegretto , presents a graceful melody played by the woodwinds, accompanied by pizzicato strings. This easy-to-remember music gradually builds in intensity, leading to a tranquil central section for strings alone, before the woodwinds join in. The initial melody returns and continues with a series of variations until the final coda.
The final movement, moderato, allegro ma non tanto , begins as a scherzo. In reality, it contains the last two movements of the symphony fused together. It presents motifs from the preceding movements, shifting from one harmony to another. This constitutes almost half of the movement. Then a hymn-like theme appears. The rhythm repeats continuously as the orchestral participation increases, building the intensity of the music. The music’s power steadily intensifies, leading us to its conclusion, which is practically without a coda.
In this work Sibelius has abandoned the romantic melodies, which made him resemble the Russian music of his earlier symphonies, employing a more personal neoclassical style.
Shortly after finishing his symphony, Mahler visited Helsinki and spoke with Sibelius about the symphony form. Sibelius indicated that what he liked most was the internal relationship between the themes, which created a profound logic.
In 1908, Sibelius made his second trip to England to conduct his new symphony at Queen’s Hall in London. To calm himself before taking the podium, Sibelius consumed large quantities of alcohol. “When I stand before a large orchestra with half a bottle of champagne in me, I can conduct like a young god. Otherwise, I feel tense and insecure, and everything behaves accordingly,” the conductor wrote to his doctor and brother, Christian.
During the summer of 1908, he underwent surgery for a throat tumor. Sensing that death was near, Sibelius gave up alcohol and tobacco. He realized that he could still drive admirably without drinking. It is believed that this health crisis influenced his compositions during the period of abstinence that lasted until 1915. This can be seen in his only published string quartet—he had written three others previously— “Voces Intimae,” begun in the same year and finished in 1909 with the title “String Quartet in D minor” (Voces intimae), Op. 56. The work reflects the anguish experienced by its composer during his surgery. The same pessimistic atmosphere would permeate his fourth symphony, which he began writing in October 1909. Another cause of his anxiety was his financial difficulties, particularly with the companies that published his music.
In the autumn of 1909, Sibelius traveled with his brother-in-law, Eero Järnefelt, to the mountains of North Karelia. He was deeply impressed by the landscape, describing it as ” one of the greatest experiences of my life .” He considered writing a symphonic poem to express his feelings, but ultimately composed a symphony, his Fourth. He titled its first movement ” The Mountain ,” but later withdrew the title, wanting his symphonies to be pure music.
The Symphony No. 4 in A minor, Op. 63, was written slowly, beginning in 1909, as we have seen, and completed in April 1911. It premiered that same year in Helsinki. The public struggled to understand the work, and its reception was not as enthusiastic as that of his earlier pieces. The orchestration includes two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons, four horns, two trumpets, three trombones, timpani, glockenspiel, and the standard string section.
This is a work of intense drama, difficult to grasp on the first listen. It’s quite different from his earlier, melodic symphonies, which are easily understood by the general public. I remember that in my youth it was the first symphony I heard by this composer, and at that time, Sibelius’s music seemed truly challenging to listen to. It really is a work that needs to be heard several times to fully appreciate the profound poetry that emanates from its enigmatic notes.
The first movement, tempo molto moderato, quasi adagio , begins somberly with a kind of fatalistic call of destiny, as its composer described it. The cello then introduces the main theme, which develops canonically. The theme then passes to the brass, where it is reaffirmed. The second theme, presented by the winds, is more forceful. An echoing call from the horn concludes the exposition. In the development, the themes are taken up by the strings, until strong chords from the winds initiate a recapitulation in reverse, leaving the strings alone with their initial theme.
The second movement, allegro molto vivace , is a scherzo. At first, it seems more cheerful than the first, but the somber atmosphere returns with the trio . The repetition of the first section is greatly abbreviated, ending rather abruptly.
The third movement, tempo largo , is structured in tripartite form. It was originally titled “Thoughts of a Wanderer ,” but Sibelius removed all titles, deeming the work in no way programmatic . The thoughts are bleak, creating a strangely vague atmosphere, as Harold Truscott notes in his commentary, like a lost soul seeking final refuge . A faint glimmer of hope seems to appear in the final section.
The final movement, Allegro , is written in rondo form. It begins with great energy, featuring a distinctive theme made possible by the use of the four notes of the glockenspiel (bells). This theme brings a touch of optimism to the preceding darkness. The use of the solo cello is also unusual. The main theme intensifies, at times even illuminating the scene, but it never fully comes to fruition. The movement concludes with a return to the feeling of desolation, ending with somber string chords.
Sibelius, without abandoning tonality, sought a new form of musical expression. He understood that he could not follow the path of a neo-romanticism like that of Richard Strauss, but he did not subscribe to the ideas of the destruction of tonality that were circulating in his time.
On the one hand, it seems to depict the atmosphere of the desolate northern regions at the end of autumn, but Sibelius’s thoughts at that time were also quite bitter. He had just recovered from a serious illness, and there were signs in the air that foreshadowed the imminent arrival of a great war.
In February 1912, he finished the second suite of “Scènes historiques” Op. 66. In December 1913, he completed the music for “Scaramouche” Op. 71 at the request of the publisher Wilhelm Hansen. It is a rare combination of dance and spoken dialogue in the form of a pantomime.
During the summer of 1914, Sibelius made his only visit to the United States. Invited by the millionaire Carl Stoeckel, he conducted his new work, “Aallottaret” (The Oceanids), Op. 73, at the Norfolk Music Festival . The work had been commissioned by Yale University the previous year at the behest of Professor Horatio Parker, Charles Ives’s teacher. Sibelius sent the original score in March, but then rewrote the entire work before embarking for the United States. The new version is longer, incorporating two excerpts from a Suite for Orchestra that he had begun the previous year. This is the version that Sibelius premiered on June 14, 1914, in New Haven, Connecticut. The first version is known as the Yale version, which remained unpublished until its premiere in the fall of 2002.
Due to the great success achieved during his visit to the United States, he was invited to return the following year, but the European war had begun and Sibelius was confined to his homeland.
The Symphony No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 82, was begun during the summer of 1914, at the beginning of the First World War. Its composition was interrupted by the need to compose smaller works to support himself. This first version of the symphony premiered on December 8, 1915, his 50th birthday, to great acclaim.
In January 1916, before its publication, Sibelius made some minor changes to his work, but he was not satisfied and made a second version of it which premiered in December 1916. But he still made modifications until the end of spring 1919.
We will discuss the original 1915 version and then examine the differences with the final version. The earlier symphony had pushed the boundaries of tonality, sounding dark and difficult to listen to in certain sections. Now Sibelius returns to a clearer tonality, but with his new personal style. This work marks the beginning of Sibelius’s late musical style.
The first movement, tempo tranquillo assai , introduces the first theme through the woodwinds, supported by the horns in an expansive manner. A tremolo in the strings leads us to the second theme, which will be further developed at length by the same instruments. A less defined section constitutes the final part of the movement, which concludes with a brief coda. We witness the fading of classical sonata form as the recapitulation disappears.
The second movement, allegro commodo, is a scherzo, but developed in a free form. The opening theme unfolds with a rhythmic expansion, supported by the strings in rapid harmonic passages. The central section becomes more dramatic, leading to a climax underscored by the brass, which brings the movement to a somewhat abrupt close.
The third movement, andante mosso , after a few introductory bars, presents a rhythmic theme, played by the strings in pizzicato and the flutes in thirds in an idyllic manner. It continues with a series of variations on the theme, increasing its melodic aspect. A movement of simple structure, but executed in a style very characteristic of Sibelius. After a final repetition of the theme by the strings alone in pizzicato, it ends peacefully.
The final movement, allegro commodo, largamente molto , begins with a massive entrance from the strings, leading into the main theme—a distinctive, broad, and expansive theme. A second, complementary theme then emerges in the woodwinds. The lyrical theme grows in the final section, driven by the strings. After a rather static passage, the recapitulation arrives with the theme clearly expanded, supported by the entire orchestra in a solemn coda.
Let us now look at the differences between the original 1915 version discussed above and the final 1919 version. Firstly, we see that it has been reduced by three movements.
The first movement, tempo molto moderato, allegro moderato , combines the two movements of the earlier version. It begins with a horn call not found in the first version. In this version, the first movement serves as a kind of introduction to the second, more dynamic movement. By combining the two movements, Sibelius achieves a more compact structure, presenting greater clarity of expression. The treatment of the wind instruments is also brighter than in the first version.
The second movement, andante mosso, quasi allegretto , uses the same theme as the third movement, but the treatment of the material occasionally differs from the original version. It is important to note the increased number of measures compared to the original. The ending has also been changed, with the woodwinds playing the main theme.
The third movement, allegro molto , retains all the elements of the first version, but Sibelius eliminates about 200 bars, especially repetitions, and also slightly alters the orchestration. The final coda has been changed with a series of orchestral chords that give it a more solemn and triumphant feel than in the first version. It’s worth remembering that Finland had achieved its independence during the period of recomposition of his symphony, and for a nationalist like Sibelius, this would have been reflected in his work.
Sibelius remained in Finland throughout the war years. In Russia, the revolution triumphed, dethroning the Tsar. Inspired by socialist revolutionaries, the Finnish people found the opportune moment to declare their independence. On December 18, 1917, the Soviet Committee of People’s Commissars recognized the independence of the Republic of Finland in a manifesto. The situation worsened in the spring of 1918, when for several months the country was engulfed in civil war between the Reds, followers of the Russian Revolution, and the Whites, supporters of the previous regime, backed by German troops. The Red forces took control of Järvenpää, and Sibelius and his family had to move temporarily to Helsinki.
When Finland was under Russian rule, military training for Finns was prohibited to prevent them from forming their own army. But nationalists found support in Germany, which formed the so-called 27th Finnish Light Infantry Battalion. On April 20, 1918, a concert was held in honor of the victorious White Army and its German allies. Sibelius performed his “Jääkärimarssi” (March of the Finnish Light Infantry Battalion). This cemented his status as a patriotic symbol of non-socialist Finland.
In 1918, Sibelius again succumbed to alcoholism. Before a concert where he performed “The Oceanides” and his “Second Symphony,” he again needed alcohol to conduct. In 1919, he wrote “Jordens sång” Op. 93 (The Song of the Earth), a cantata for the inauguration of the Åbo Akademi . In 1921, Sibelius visited England for the last time, performing his Fifth Symphony in London to great acclaim. He continued his tour in Birmingham before returning to London on February 26 to conduct the Fourth .
The “Symphony No. 6 in D minor,” Op. 104, was begun in 1918 while he was still revising his Fifth . According to a letter written to his friend and patron Alex Carpelan, he stated that he was working on three new symphonies. The first of these was completed in 1923 and premiered in Helsinki on February 19 of that year, later being performed in Stockholm and Gothenburg.
The first movement, allegro molto moderato , begins with a serene, expansive melody in the strings. It is a distinctly modal movement, in the sonata form characteristic of Sibelius, in which the themes are not contrasted, nor can one truly speak of themes but rather of a harmonic development. After a more static central section, the final section regains its energy with great melodic force. The movement ends abruptly, after reaching a climax , to give way to the next.
The second movement, allegretto moderato , continues the hazy atmosphere of the previous movement. Written in a pastoral style imbued with a certain mystery, it seems to depict the northern landscape bathed in the pale light of early spring. An ostinato motif leads us to the final coda.
The third movement, poco vivace , constitutes the scherzo of the work. A movement with few thematic motifs but imbued with great rhythmic force, with a brief, somewhat uncontrasted trio , which, upon regaining the initial rhythm, propels the brass towards a challenging finale.
It ends with an allegro molto , the beginning of which derives from the opening theme of the work. Its development gains in intensity, the music becoming brighter. The final section returns us to the tranquility of the beginning, with the melody passing to the strings.
Sibelius toured Sweden with his wife, Aino. He conducted concerts of his own works in Stockholm and Gothenburg. He again needed his bottle of champagne before taking the podium, and his problem worsened in Gothenburg. The first concert was a success, but after the rehearsal on the morning of the second recital, he disappeared into the city. He was found at eight in the evening, sitting in a restaurant eating oysters and drinking champagne. He was dragged back to the concert hall in a state of intoxication. He took the podium at the appointed time, but after only a few bars, he stopped the orchestra, thinking he was in another rehearsal. His wife, who was present at the concert, was mortified. But the composer managed to recover and begin his symphony, which he knew so well.
This incident strained the relationship between Sibelius and his wife. Furthermore, the composer began to suffer from a chronic tremor in his hands, and only moderate alcohol consumption provided him with the necessary calm to compose music. Aino was horrified by what had happened and refused to accompany her husband to his concerts, fearing she would see him drunk in public. During his second tour in Stockholm, Sibelius traveled alone.
The “Symphony No. 7 in C major,” Op. 105, was begun concurrently with the previous one and completed in 1924. The work premiered in Stockholm in March. It was initially conceived in three movements, but following the integrative trend observed in his later works, he condensed it into a single movement. He initially presented it as a Symphonic Fantasy, but ultimately published it as a Symphony.
The symphony’s single movement comprises the following sections, played without interruption: adagio, vivacissimo, adagio, allegro molto moderato, allegro moderato, presto, adagio, largamente molto, affettuoso . The movement can be divided into an opening adagio, a scherzo, and a rondo, ending with a return to the opening adagio. It begins with an adagio that introduces the first thematic motif, a calm and reassuring theme, yet shrouded in a hazy atmosphere. A counter-motif lends it a sweet and dreamy air. The opening theme takes on a chorale form. It concludes with a solemn trombone solo, followed by a kind of recapitulation. The lively scherzo that ensues is a progression of what came before. The atmosphere grows more oppressive until the trombone solo reappears.
The rondo section begins lightly, with its dance theme introduced by the English horn. The atmosphere gradually becomes more somber, alternating with the main rondo theme, until the trombone solo appears for the third time in a dramatic climax . The tremulous strings lead us to the final adagio, reminiscent of the earlier themes, which will bring us to a hopeful conclusion.
In 1925, Sibelius traveled to Italy, where he composed the music for his last poem based on the Kalevala . In 1926, as mentioned, he completed his last major work, the symphonic poem “Tapiola,” Op. 112, written for Walter Damrosch and the New York Symphony Society, which premiered it on December 26, 1926, without the composer present. It is a distinctly Nordic work, despite having been composed in Italy.
In 1925 he also wrote the incidental music for “La Tempête,” Op. 109, for the theatrical performance of Shakespeare’s play of the same name. It premiered on March 16, 1926, at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen. In 1927 he arranged this music into a Prelude and two Concert Suites.
Sibelius’s career as a conductor had come into a dramatic decline after the Gothenburg disaster. One of his last concerts took place in Copenhagen in October 1926.
Op. 113 , premiered at the Grand Lodge of Finland On January 5, 1927, his “Music for a Masonic Ritual,” . Sibelius had joined the Lodge on August 18, 1922. He was appointed Grand Organist for the new Grand Lodge, a position he would hold for the rest of his life. He was then asked to compose a series of works for use within the Masonic community. This culminated in the composition of twelve pieces grouped under Op. 113. The final part of the work contains the patriotic anthem “Finland,” Op. 26. A clarification is necessary regarding this anthem. Despite its popularity and significance as a Finnish national anthem, it is not the national anthem of Finland. The true national anthem is “Our Land,” with music by Frederik Pacius.
The “Music for a Masonic Ritual,” Op. 113, remained in manuscript form until Sibelius sent it to the Grand Lodge of New York in 1935, at which point it was published. A choral movement within the work became famous when Sibelius arranged it for choir and orchestra in 1938, removing the Masonic references. This arrangement premiered in New York during the 1938 World’s Fair.
In August 1927, the Finnish Parliament passed a law on intellectual property. This ended his years of financial hardship, during which he had been forced to compose occasional pieces to make ends meet. Now, with the proceeds from his royalties, he was a wealthy man. Then came Sibelius’s compositional silence. For years he worked on his Eighth Symphony , which he never completed. Apparently, during the Second World War, he destroyed it by throwing it into a fire. Only a few notes on the work have survived.
His only works composed during the early part of his retirement as a conductor and composer were short pieces for piano and for violin and piano duo. His last published work is a “Suite” Op. 117 for cello and orchestra, written around 1930.
Only one recording of Sibelius conducting survives. In January 1939, he recorded his short “Andante Festivo” for a radio program in honor of the New York World’s Fair. He performed it as a special event in response to a request from his friend Olin Downes, a critic for the New York Times .
Sibelius led a quiet life for the rest of his years, working only on occasional revisions of his works. His 90th birthday was celebrated in 1955 with numerous performances of his music around the world. On September 20, 1957, he died of a cerebral hemorrhage and was buried in the garden of his home, Ainola .
After Sibelius’s death, his wife Aino continued to live in their house until her own death in 1969. The couple had six daughters: Kirsti, who died in infancy; Eva; Ruth; Katarina; Margareta; and Heidi. In 1972, Sibelius’s five daughters, along with the Ministry of Education and the Sibelius Society, established the Ainola Foundation to preserve the house as a cultural monument. Ainola has been open to the public since 1974. The last surviving of Sibelius’s daughters, Margareta, died in 1988.
We can draw a comparison between the two great Nordic composers, Nielsen and Sibelius. Their lives ran parallel; both were born in the same year, and their artistic careers as composers ended around the same time. Nielsen was a follower of the serious, academic forms inherited from Brahms. He rejected descriptive forms in his symphonies, writing pure music. He undertook research to find a new, freer style of music, without reaching atonality, but employing the full potential of tonal music, expanding it into an expansive tonality, as we have seen.
Sibelius is more conservative, despite creating a modern and undeniably distinctive body of work. He continues the Russian Romantic tradition, following in the footsteps of Tchaikovsky and Scriabin, imbuing his music with a highly descriptive quality, much of it inspired by Finnish folklore. He was a nationalist, in a land that needed it, unlike Denmark, which already possessed its own distinct identity. Sibelius’s music is more easily understood by the general public than Nielsen’s, as his style is less risky. But what is undeniable is that Nielsen composed a “Fifth Symphony” that can be considered a masterpiece, one that would significantly influence future generations.