Einojuhani Rautavaara
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Einojuhani Rautavaara (born October 9, 1928) is a Finnish composer of modern classical music, probably the best-known Finnish composer of his generation.
Contents |
[edit] Life
Rautavaara was born in Helsinki and studied at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki under Aarre Merikanto from 1948 to 1952 before Jean Sibelius recommended him for a scholarship to study at the Juilliard School in New York City. There he was taught by Vincent Persichetti, and he also took lessons from Roger Sessions and Aaron Copland at Tanglewood. He first came to international attention when he won the Thor Johnson Contest for his composition A Requiem in Our Time in 1954.
Rautavaara served as a non-tenured teacher at the Sibelius Academy from 1957 to 1959, music archivist of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra from 1959 to 1961, rector of the Käpylä Music Institute in Helsinki from 1965 to 1966, tenured teacher at the Sibelius Academy from 1966 to 1976, artist professor (appointed by the Arts Council of Finland) from 1971 to 1976, and professor of composition at the Sibelius Academy from 1976 to 1990.
Rautavaara had a serious seizure at the beginning of 2004 but has since recovered.
[edit] Music
Rautavaara is a prolific composer and has written in a variety of forms and styles. Much of his work is quite accessible and has proved to be quite popular. He experimented with serial techniques in his early career but left them behind in the 1960s and even his serial works are not obviously serial. His third symphony, for example, uses such techniques, but sounds more like Anton Bruckner than it does a more traditional serialist such as Pierre Boulez. His later works often have a mystical element (such as in several works with titles making reference to angels). A characteristic 'Rautavaara sound' might be a rhapsodic string theme of austere beauty, with whirling flute lines, gently dissonant bells, and perhaps the suggestion of a pastoral horn.
His compositions include eight symphonies, several concertos, choral works (several for unaccompanied choir, including Vigilia (1971-1972)), sonatas for various instruments, string quartets and other chamber music, and a number of operas including Vincent (1986-1987, based on the life of Vincent Van Gogh), Aleksis Kivi (1995-1996) and Rasputin (2001-2003) A number of his works have parts for magnetic tape, including Cantus Arcticus (1972, also known as Concerto for Birds & Orchestra) for taped bird song and orchestra, and True and False Unicorn (1971, second version 1974, revised 2001-02), the final version of which is for three reciters, choir, orchestra and tape.
His latest works include orchestral works Book of Visions (2003-2005), Manhattan Trilogy (2003-2005) and Before the Icons (2005) which is an expanded version of his early piano work Icons. In 2005 he finished a work for violin and piano called Lost Landscapes, commissioned by the violinist Midori Goto.
Many of Rautavaara's works have been recorded, with a performance of his seventh symphony, Angel of Light (1995), by the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Leif Segerstam on the Ondine label, being a particular critical and popular success - it was nominated for several awards, including a Grammy.
Almost all of Rautavaara's works have been recorded by Ondine. Some of his major works have also been recorded by Naxos.
[edit] Works
[edit] Opera
- Vincent
- Rasputin
- Aleksis Kivi
- The House of the Sun, chamber opera
- The Gift of the Magi, chamber opera
[edit] Orchestra
- Symphonies
- Symphony No. 1
- Symphony No. 2 Sinfonia Intima
- Symphony No. 3
- Symphony No. 4 Arabescata
- Symphony No. 5
- Symphony No. 6 Vincentiana
- Symphony No. 7 Angel of Light
- Symphony No. 8 The Journey
- Concerto for Birds and Orchestra Cantus Arcticus, for taped bird sounds and orchestra
- Angels and Visitations
- Book of Visions
- Garden of Spaces
- Isle of Bliss
- Anadyomene (Adoration of Aphrodite)
[edit] String Orchestra
- Fiddlers
- Divertimento
- Suite for Strings
- Hommage a Liszt Ferenc
- Hommage a Kodaly Zoltan
- An Epitaph for Bela Bartok
- Cantos 1
- Cantos 2
- Cantos 3
- Cantos 4
- A Finnish Myth
- Ostrobothnian Polska
[edit] Concertante
- Piano
- Piano Concerto No. 1
- Piano Concerto No. 2
- Piano Concerto No. 3 Gift of Dreams
- Violin Concerto
- Cello Concerto
- Double Bass Concerto Angel of Dusk
- Flute Concerto Dances with the Winds
- Clarinet Concerto
- Harp
- Harp Concerto
- Ballad for Harp and Strings
[edit] Choral
- All-Night Vigil, a capella sacred music
- On the Last Frontier, fantasy for chorus and orchestra
- True and False Unicorn, cantata
- Song of Our Time, choral suite
- In the Shade of the Willow, choral song
- Wenn sich die Welt auftut, 5 songs for female choir
[edit] Chamber/Instrumental
- String Quartets
- String Quartet No. 1
- String Quartet No. 2
- String Quartet No. 3
- String Quartet No. 4
- String Quintet Unknown Heavens
- Cello Sonatas
- Cello Sonata No. 1
- Cello Sonata No. 2
- Octet for Wind Instruments
- Hymnus, for trumpet and organ
[edit] Piano
- Piano Sonatas
- Piano Sonata No. 1 Christus und die Fischer, Op. 50 (1969)
- Piano Sonata No. 2 The Fire Sermon, Op. 64 (1970)
- Icons, Op. 6 (1955)
- Preludes, Op. 7 (1956)
- Partita, Op. 34 (1956-8)
- Etudes, Op. 42 (1969)
[edit] External links
- CV and list of works from the Finnish Music Information Centre
- Home page at Boosey & Hawkes
- Biographical sketch at Virtual Finland, produced by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland
