Jean Sibelius

Sibelius began to study law upon graduation from high school in 1885, but quickly switched to the Helsinki Music Institute (now the Sibelius Academy) from which he graduated in 1889. He studied another year in Berlin with Albert Becker, then in Vienna with Karl Goldmark. About that time he changed his musical direction, thinking he'd begun to play violin too late in life to become virtuosic. So he studied another year in Italy before beginning a career in composition and conducting that would find him traveling to points in Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, France and Germany. Asami Hagiwara assists in understanding Sibelius by finding him in three periods according to piano works, beginning the first from 1890 to 1903 described as national romantic, citing 'Six Impromptus' Op 5 as representative of this period. Sibelius' middle period, labeled neo-classical from 1903 to 1919, with 'Ten Pieces' Op 58 representative of that period. Hagiwara describes Sibelius' final period as a synthesis, citing 'Six Pieces' Op 94 of 1919, 'Sechs Bagatellen' Op 97 of 1920 and 'Huit petits Morceaux' Op 99 of 1922 as representative of this last period.

'Berceuse' ('Lullaby')   Op 79 No.6   Jean Sibelius

From 'Six Pieces for Violin and Piano' Op 79

Comp 1917   Pub 1922

Piano: Katarina Krpan   Violin: Katarina Kutnar

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Finland was a Russian domain until declaring independence in December 1917 as of the Bolshevik Revolution amidst the climate of World War I. Per Hagiwara above, Sibelius' final period is marked by 'Six Pieces' Op 94 of 1919.

'Six Pieces'   Op 94   Jean Sibelius

Comp 1914-19   Pub 1920

Piano: Håvard Gimse

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'Sechs Bagatellen'   Op 97   Jean Sibelius

Comp 1920   Pub 1921

Piano: Eero Heinonen

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Sibelius was a Freemason, as had been composers such as Frederick II and Franz Liszt. Freemasonry had been banned from Finland under the Russian monarchy until winning independence in 1917 to become a republic in 1919. Sibelius became a founding member of Suomi Lodge 1 in Helsinki in 1922 while composing 'Symphony No.6' in D minor Op 104 toward its premiere by the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra on 19 February 1923. Sibelius' 'Symphony No.7' in C major Op 105 arrived to Stockholm on 24 March 1924 with Sibelius conducting.

'Symphony No.6'   Op 104 in D minor   Jean Sibelius

Comp 1921   Pub 1923

Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra / Esa-Pekka Salonen

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'Huit Petits Morceaux'   Op 99   Jean Sibelius

Comp 1922   Pub 1923

Piano: Annette Servadei

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'Symphony No.7'   Op 105 in C major   Jean Sibelius

Comp 1918-March 1924   Pub 1925

Danish National Symphony Orchestra / Leif Segerstam

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Come incidental music for Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' of 1610-11 with 'The Tempest' JS 182 first performed on 15 March 1926. In 1929 Sibelius published the 'Overture' as a work in itself as Op 109 No.1, along with two Suites drawn from 'The Tempest'. 'Suite 1' Op 109 No.2 consisted of 9 movements finished in 1929. 'Suite 2' Op 109 No.3 consisted of nine movements completed earlier in 1927.

'Overture" to the The Tempest'   Op 109 No.1   Jean Sibelius

Comp 1925-26   Revised 1927/29   Pub 1929

Orkiestra Opery i Filharmonii Podlaskiej / Young Chil Lee

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Sibelius' final symphonic poem was 'Tapiola' Op 112 finished in August of 1926 toward its premiere on 26 December 1926. Tapio is the spiritual king of the forest in Finnish mythology.

'Tapiola'   Op 112   Jean Sibelius

Comp completed Aug 1926   Premiere 26 Dec 1926 in New York   Pub 1926 in Leipzig

Philharmonia Orchestra / Herbert von Karajan   London 1953

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On 12 January 1927 Sibelius premiered the first eight pieces of 'Masonic Ritual Music' Op 113. Other titles were eventually added to as late as 1946 (revisions 1948) to complete the whole to twelve pieces, the first of which was the 'Finlandia Hymn' drawn from Sibelius' 1900 'Finlandia' Op 26 above in 1937, albeit added as No.12 (final piece). That was with a text for male choir by opera singer, Wäinö Sola, which mistakenly saw publishing in America the same year (1937) by the Grand Lodge of New York. Sibelius had worked with Sola in 1927 when he premiered the first several pieces of 'Masonic Ritual Music'. Though he arranged 'Finlandia Hymn' for Sola's male choir, its publication in the United States with Sola's text was unbeknownst to him. In 1940 Sibelius sanctioned a text supplied by Veikko Antero Koskenniemi. Not until 1948 did Sibelius become aware of "Finlandia Hymn' getting published in America with Sola's text eleven years earlier. Thusly did 'Finlandia Hymn' acquire two versions for voice, Sola's which Jean very liked though not for publishing, and the more commonly heard with text by Koskenniemi which Jean officially intended. It has been proposed that Finland make 'Finlandia Hymn' its national anthem. Though Finland has no "official" national anthem, what has ever been employed as such is 'Maamme' arriving in 1848 with music by Fredrik Pacius and text by Johan Ludvig Runeberge. The 'Finlandia Hymn' also supplied the setting for Lloyd Stone's patriotic 'This Is My Song' of 1934. It also supplies the setting to a couple of older Christian hymns, one of which is 'Be Still My Soul' with original text by Katharina Amalia Dorothea as of 1752. Another is 'We Rest On Thee' by Edith G. Cherry circa 1895. Per below, all but Pacius' 'Maamme' evolved from Sibelius' 'Finlandia' Op 26 of 1900.

'Vårt land' ('Our Land') aka 'Maamme' ('Our Country')   Fredrik Pacius

Unofficial National Anthem of Finland   1848   Premiere: 13 May 1848

Text: Johan Ludvig Runeberge

Polyteknikkojen Kuoro   2014

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