Misplaced Pages

#374625

101-578: The name Ilmatar is derived from the Finnish word ilma , meaning "air," and the female suffix -tar , corresponding to the English "-ess". Thus, her name means Airess . In the Kalevala she was also occasionally called Luonnotar ( Finnish pronunciation: [ˈluo̯nːo̞t̪ɑr] ), which means "Naturess," "female spirit of nature" (Finnish luonto , "nature"). She was impregnated by the sea and wind and thus became

202-525: A London performance in 1933 under Basil Cameron was even advertised to the public. The only concrete evidence of the symphony's existence on paper is a 1933 bill for a fair copy of the first movement and short draft fragments first published and played in 2011. Sibelius had always been quite self-critical; he remarked to his close friends, "If I cannot write a better symphony than my Seventh, then it shall be my last." Since no manuscript survives, sources consider it likely that Sibelius destroyed most traces of

303-399: A banker and Heidi Blomstedt was a designer, wife of architect Aulis Blomstedt . Margareta married conductor Jussi Jalas , Aulis Blomstedt's brother. In 1892, Kullervo inaugurated Sibelius's focus on orchestral music. It was described by the composer Aksel Törnudd  [ fi ] as "a volcanic eruption" while Juho Ranta who sang in the choir stated, "It was Finnish music." At

404-431: A few major works during the rest of his life. Arguably the two most significant of these were the incidental music for The Tempest and the tone poem Tapiola . For most of the last thirty years of his life, Sibelius even avoided talking publicly about his music. There is substantial evidence that Sibelius worked on an eighth symphony. He promised the premiere of this symphony to Serge Koussevitzky in 1931 and 1932, and

505-653: A few small pieces, he relied increasingly on alcohol. In May 1925, his Danish publisher Wilhelm Hansen and the Royal Danish Theatre invited him to compose incidental music for a production of Shakespeare 's The Tempest . He completed the work well in advance of its premiere in March 1926. It was well received in Copenhagen although Sibelius was not there himself. The music journalist Vesa Sirén has found evidence that Sibelius perhaps suffered from essential tremor since

606-653: A highly successful trip to England in early 1921—conducting several concerts around the country, including the Fourth and Fifth symphonies, The Oceanides , the ever-popular Finlandia , and Valse triste . Immediately afterwards, he conducted the Second Symphony and Valse triste in Norway. He was beginning to suffer from exhaustion, but the critics remained positive. On his return to Finland in April, he presented Lemminkäinen's Return and

707-499: A hundred parts"), " omena " (apple) and " suomo " (from " Suomi ", the Finnish name for Finland). The Finnish language does not use plurals when referring to multiple markkaa, but partitive singular forms: "10 markkaa" and "10 penniä" (the nominative is penni ). In Swedish, the singular and plural forms of "mark" and "penni" are the same. When the euro replaced the markka, mummonmarkka ( lit.   ' grandma's markka ' , sometimes shortened to just mummo ) became

808-573: A large section of the audience left the hall between the movements while in October, after a concert conducted by Carl Muck , the Boston American labelled it "a sad failure". Sibelius's first significant composition of 1913 was the tone poem The Bard , which he conducted in March to a respectful audience in Helsinki. He went on to compose Luonnotar (Daughter of Nature) for soprano and orchestra. With

909-452: A minor controversy at the time. By the end of 2001, Finland was a relatively cashless society . Most transactions were paid either using the 100 mk banknote or by debit card. There were 4 million banknotes apiece of the 500 mk and 1,000 mk denomination banknotes for a country with a population of over 5 million people. There were about 19 banknotes per individual of the smaller denomination, adding up to €241 per inhabitant. For

1010-524: A native Swedish speaker. In 1876, he continued his education at the Finnish-language Hämeenlinna Normal Lyceum where he was a rather absent-minded pupil, though did quite well in mathematics and botany. Despite having to repeat a year, he passed the school's final examination in 1885, which allowed him to enter a university. As a boy he was known as Janne , a colloquial form of Johan. However, during his student years, he adopted

1111-471: A new colloquial term for the old currency. The sometimes used "old markka" can be misleading, since it can also be used to refer to the pre-1963 markka. In Helsinki slang , the sum of a hundred markkaa was traditionally called a huge [hu.ge] (from Swedish hundra for "hundred"). After the 1963 reform, this name was used for one new markka. The markka was introduced in 1860 by the Bank of Finland , replacing

SECTION 10

#1733085287375

1212-515: A particularly strong interest in the instrument. Setting his heart on a career as a great violin virtuoso, he soon became an accomplished player, performing David 's Concerto in E minor in 1886 and, the following year, the last two movements of Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in Helsinki. Despite such success as an instrumentalist, he ultimately chose to become a composer. In 1874, Sibelius attended Lucina Hagman's Finnish-speaking preparatory school as

1313-480: A present was about to be confiscated by the bailiffs when the singer Ida Ekman paid off a large proportion of his debt after a successful fund-raising campaign. A year later, on 8 December 1916, Sibelius presented the revised version of his Fifth Symphony in Turku, combining the first two movements and simplifying the finale. When it was performed a week later in Helsinki, Katila was very favourable but Wasenius frowned on

1414-466: A result, his mother—who was again pregnant—had to sell their property and move the family into the home of Katarina Borg, her widowed mother, who also lived in Hämeenlinna. Sibelius was therefore brought up in a decidedly female environment, the only male influence coming from his uncle, Pehr Ferdinand Sibelius, who was interested in music, especially the violin. Pehr Ferdinand gave the boy a violin when he

1515-654: A revised version of his First Symphony) in thirteen cities including Stockholm, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Berlin and Paris. The critics were highly favorable, bringing the composer international recognition with their enthusiastic reports in the Berliner Börsen-Courier , the Berliner Fremdenblatt and the Berliner Lokal Anzeiger . During a trip with his family to Rapallo , Italy in 1901, Sibelius began to write his Second Symphony , partly inspired by

1616-434: A sanatorium, suffering from exhaustion. While she was away, Sibelius resolved to give up drinking , concentrating instead on composing his Third Symphony . He completed the work for a performance in Helsinki on 25 September. Although its more classical approach surprised the audience, Flodin commented that it was "internally new and revolutionary". Shortly afterwards Sibelius met Austro-Bohemian composer Gustav Mahler who

1717-444: A short pizzicato piece Vattendroppar (Water Drops) for violin, possibly as an etude or musical exercise. The first reference he made to himself composing is in a letter from August 1883 in which he writes that he composed a trio and was working on another: "They are rather poor, but it is nice to have something to do on rainy days." In 1881, he began violin lessons with the local bandmaster, Gustaf Levander, immediately developing

1818-641: A spell in hospital. His smoking and drinking had now become life-threatening. Although he cancelled concerts in Rome, Warsaw and Berlin, he maintained an engagement in London but there too his Third Symphony failed to attract the critics. In May 1908, Sibelius's health deteriorated further. He travelled with his wife to Berlin to have a tumour removed from his throat. After the operation, he vowed to give up smoking and drinking once and for all. The impact of this brush with death has been said to have inspired works that he composed in

1919-704: A text from the Kalevala , it was first performed in Finnish in September 1913 by Aino Ackté (to whom it had been dedicated) at the music festival in Gloucester , England. In early 1914, Sibelius spent a month in Berlin where he was particularly drawn to Arnold Schoenberg . Back in Finland, he began work on The Oceanides , which the American millionaire Carl Stoeckel had commissioned for

2020-470: A time, although also showing interest in the established works of Beethoven and Wagner . He enjoyed his year in Vienna, frequently partying and gambling with his new friends. It was also in Vienna that he turned to orchestral composition, composing an Overture in E major and a Scène de Ballet . While embarking on Kullervo , an orchestral work with chorus and soloists inspired by the Kalevala , he fell ill but

2121-420: A violinist: My tragedy was that I wanted to be a celebrated violinist at any price. Since the age of 15 I played my violin practically from morning to night. I hated pen and ink—unfortunately I preferred an elegant violin bow. My love for the violin lasted quite long and it was a very painful awakening when I had to admit that I had begun my training for the exacting career of a virtuoso too late. In addition to

SECTION 20

#1733085287375

2222-475: A young age and that he reduced the symptoms by drinking alcohol. This self-medication is common and effective but discouraged by doctors due to the risks outweighing the benefits. Sirén's research is supported by several medical experts. The tremor presumably prevented writing and impaired his social life. The year 1926 saw a sharp and lasting decline in Sibelius's output: after his Seventh Symphony, he produced only

2323-805: The Helsinki City Orchestra with soloist Anja Ignatius originated a broadcast of Sibelius compositions to 14 countries in coordination with the International Broadcasting Union . The program included the tone poem The Oceanides , followed by his Fifth Symphony , and the Violin Concerto. In 1935 The New York Philharmonic surveyed the preferences of music listeners around the United States. When asked who their favourite composer was, Sibelius came first among all of them, living or dead. This degree of recognition during his own lifetime

2424-574: The Karelia Suite . Their home, Ainola , was completed near Lake Tuusula , Järvenpää, in 1904. During the years at Ainola, they had six daughters: Eva, Ruth, Kirsti (who died aged one from typhoid ), Katarina, Margareta and Heidi. Eva married an industrial heir, Arvi Paloheimo, and later became the CEO of the Paloheimo Corporation. Ruth Snellman (fi) was a prominent actress, Katarina Ilves married

2525-609: The Norfolk Music Festival . After first composing the work in D-flat major, Sibelius undertook substantive revisions, presenting a D major version in Norfolk, which was well received, as were Finlandia and the Valse triste . Henry Krehbiel considered The Oceanides one of the most beautiful pieces of sea music ever composed, while The New York Times commented that Sibelius's music was

2626-572: The Russian ruble at a rate of four markkaa to one ruble. Senator Fabian Langenskiöld is called "father of the markka". In 1865, the markka was separated from the ruble and tied to the value of silver . From 1878 to 1915, Finland adopted the gold standard of the Latin Monetary Union . Before the markka, both the Swedish riksdaler and ruble were used side-by-side for a time. Up until World War I ,

2727-614: The Second World War , copper replaced cupro-nickel in the 25p and 50p and 1 mk, followed by an issue of iron 10p, 25p and 50p and 1 mk. This period also saw the issue of holed 5p and 10p coins. All coins below 1 markka had ceased to be produced by 1948. In 1952, a new coinage was introduced, with smaller iron (later nickel-plated) 1 mk and 5 mk coins alongside aluminium-bronze 10 mk, 20 mk and 50 mk coins and (from 1956) silver 100 mk and 200 mk denominations. This coinage continued to be issued until

2828-470: The early 1990s depression in Finland . It was caused by several factors, the most severe being the incurring of debt, as the 1980s economic boom was based on debt. Also, the Soviet Union had collapsed , which brought an end to bilateral trade , and existing trade connections were severed. The most important source of export revenue, Western markets, were also depressed during the same time, in part due to

2929-432: The "silence of Järvenpää " (the location of his home). Although he is reputed to have stopped composing, he attempted to continue writing, including abortive efforts on an eighth symphony . In later life, he wrote Masonic music and re-edited some earlier works, while retaining an active but not always favourable interest in new developments in music. Although this 'silence' has often perplexed scholars, in reality, Sibelius

3030-498: The 1894–95 season, works such as En saga , Karelia and Vårsång (composed in 1894) were included in at least 16 concerts in the capital, not to mention those in Turku . When performed in a revised version on 17 April 1895, the composer Oskar Merikanto welcomed Vårsång (Spring Song) as "the fairest flower among Sibelius's orchestral pieces". For a considerable period, Sibelius worked on an opera, Veneen luominen (The Building of

3131-446: The Bank of Finland used a photograph of Väinö Linna on the 20 mk note without permission from copyright holders. This was only revealed after several million notes were in use. The Bank paid 100,000 mk (€17,000) compensation to the rights holders. The second-to-last banknote design series, designed by Tapio Wirkkala , was introduced in 1955 and revised in the reform of 1963. It was

Ilmatar - Misplaced Pages Continue

3232-487: The Boat), again based on the Kalevala . To some extent, he had come under the influence of Wagner, but subsequently turned to Liszt 's tone poems as a source of compositional inspiration. Adapted from material for the opera, which he never completed, his Lemminkäinen Suite consisted of four legends in the form of tone poems. They were premiered in Helsinki on 13 April 1896 to a full house. In contrast to Merikanto's enthusiasm for

3333-607: The Fifth Symphony at the Nordic Music Days. Early in 1922, after suffering from headaches Sibelius decided to acquire spectacles although he never wore them for photographs. In July, he was saddened by the death of his brother Christian. In August, he joined the Finnish Freemasons and composed ritual music for them. In February 1923, he premiered his Sixth Symphony . Evert Katila highly praised it as "pure idyll." Before

3434-874: The Finnish capital. Sibelius was born on 8 December 1865 in Hämeenlinna ( Swedish : Tavastehus ) in the Grand Duchy of Finland , an autonomous state within the Russian Empire . He was the son of the Swedish-speaking medical doctor Christian Gustaf Sibelius and Maria Charlotta Sibelius (née Borg). The family name stems from the Sibbe estate in Eastern Uusimaa , which his paternal great-grandfather owned. Sibelius's father died of typhoid in July 1868, leaving substantial debts. As

3535-472: The Finnish composer Robert Kajanus conducting the Berlin Philharmonic in a program that included his symphonic poem Aino , a patriotic piece that may have inspired Sibelius's later interest in using the epic poem Kalevala as a basis for his own compositions. While in Vienna, he became particularly interested in the music of Anton Bruckner whom he regarded as "the greatest living composer" for

3636-729: The Finnish quality of the work, the critic Karl Flodin found the cor anglais solo in The Swan of Tuonela "stupendously long and boring", although he considered the first legend, Lemminkäinen and the Maidens of the Island , as representing the peak of Sibelius's achievement to date. To pay his way, from 1892 Sibelius had taken on teaching assignments at the Music Institute and at Kajanus's conducting school but this left him insufficient time for composing. The situation improved considerably when in 1898 he

3737-636: The First Symphony and Finlandia , writing to Aino that the concert had been a great success and widely acclaimed. In 1906, after a short, rather uneventful stay in Paris at the beginning of the year, Sibelius spent several months composing in Ainola, his major work of the period being Pohjola's Daughter , yet another piece based on the Kalevala . Later in the year he composed incidental music for Belshazzar's Feast , also adapting it as an orchestral suite. He ended

3838-671: The French form Jean , inspired by the business card of his deceased seafaring uncle. Thereafter he became known as Jean Sibelius. After graduating from high school in 1885, Sibelius began to study law at the Imperial Alexander University in Finland but, showing far more interest in music, soon moved to the Helsinki Music Institute (now the Sibelius Academy ) where he studied from 1885 to 1889. One of his teachers

3939-663: The Red Guard commander-in-chief Eero Haapalainen , who guaranteed Sibelius a safe journey from Ainola to the capital. On 20 February, a group of Red Guard fighters escorted the family to Helsinki. Finally, from 12 to 13 April, the German troops occupied the city and the Red period was over. A week later, the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra gave a concert in homage to the German commander Rüdiger von der Goltz . Sibelius finished off

4040-656: The Senate's declaration of independence from Russia in December 1917. The Jäger March , first played on 19 January 1918, delighted the Helsinki elite for a short time until the start of the Finnish Civil War on 27 January. Sibelius naturally supported the Whites , but as a Tolstoyan , Aino Sibelius had some sympathies for the Reds too. In February, his house (Ainola) was searched twice by

4141-705: The audience. By the end of the year, he was already working on the Sixth. In 1920, despite a growing tremor in his hands, Sibelius composed the Hymn of the Earth to a text by the poet Eino Leino for the Suomen Laulu Choir and orchestrated his Valse lyrique , helped along by drinking wine. On his birthday in December 1920, Sibelius received a donation of 63,000 marks, a substantial sum the tenor Wäinö Sola  [ fi ] had raised from Finnish businesses. Although he used some of

Ilmatar - Misplaced Pages Continue

4242-520: The birth of Sibelius's first child Eva, in April the premiere of his choral work Väinämöinen's Boat Ride was a considerable success, receiving the support of the press. On 13 November 1893, the full version of Karelia was premiered at a student association gala at the Seurahuone in Viipuri with the collaboration of the artist Axel Gallén and the sculptor Emil Wikström who had been brought in to design

4343-425: The cello. ( Christian Sibelius was to become an eminent psychiatrist , still remembered for his contributions to modern psychiatry in Finland.) Sibelius soon began playing in quartets with neighboring families, furthering his experience performing chamber music. Fragments survive of his early compositions of the period, a trio, a piano quartet and a Suite in D Minor for violin and piano. Around 1881, he transcribed

4444-460: The changes, leading the composer to rewrite it once again. From the beginning of 1917, Sibelius started drinking again, triggering arguments with Aino. Their relationship improved with the excitement resulting from the start of the Russian Revolution . By the end of the year, Sibelius had composed his Jäger March . The piece proved particularly popular after the Finnish parliament accepted

4545-524: The concert itself was successful, it received mixed reviews, some very positive while those in the Allgemeine Zeitung and the Berliner Tageblatt were less enthusiastic. Back in Finland, he rewrote the increasingly popular Pelléas and Mélisande as an orchestral suite. In November, visiting Britain for the first time, he went to Liverpool where he met Henry Wood . On 2 December, he conducted

4646-563: The construction costs, he gave concerts in Helsinki, Turku and Vaasa in early 1904 as well as in Tallinn, Estonia, and in Latvia during the summer. The family were finally able to move into the new property on 24 September 1904, making friends with the local artistic community, including the painters Eero Järnefelt and Pekka Halonen and the novelist Juhani Aho . In January 1905, Sibelius returned to Berlin where he conducted his Second Symphony. While

4747-507: The depictions of people. A popular joke at the time was to cover Paasikivi's face except for his ear and back of the head on the 10 mk note, ending up with something resembling a mouse, said to be the only animal illustration in the entire series. The still-older notes, designed by Eliel Saarinen , were introduced in 1922. They also depicted people, but these were generic men and women, and did not represent any specific individuals. The fact that these men and women were depicted nude caused

4848-559: The end of that year the composer's grandmother, Katarina Borg died. Sibelius went to her funeral, visiting his Hämeenlinna home one last time before the house was sold. On 16 February 1893, the first (extended) version of En saga was presented in Helsinki although it was not too well received, the critics suggesting that superfluous sections should be eliminated (as they were in Sibelius's 1902 version). Even less successful were three more performances of Kullervo in March, which one critic found incomprehensible and lacking in vitality. Following

4949-457: The event by conducting the Jäger March . In early 1919, Sibelius enthusiastically decided to change his image, shaving off what remained of his thinning hair. In June, together with Aino, he visited Copenhagen on his first trip outside Finland since 1915, successfully presenting his Second Symphony. In November he conducted the final version of his Fifth Symphony, receiving repeated ovations from

5050-531: The family home. There he met and immediately fell in love with Aino , the 17-year-old daughter of General Alexander Järnefelt , the governor of Vaasa , and Elisabeth Clodt von Jürgensburg , a Baltic aristocrat. The wedding was held on 10 June 1892 at Maxmo . They spent their honeymoon in Karelia , the home of the Kalevala . It served as an inspiration for Sibelius's tone poem En saga , the Lemminkäinen legends and

5151-539: The fate of Don Juan in Mozart's Don Giovanni . It was completed in early 1902 with its premiere in Helsinki on 8 March. The work was received with tremendous enthusiasm by the Finns. Merikanto felt it exceeded "even the boldest expectations," while Evert Katila qualified it as "an absolute masterpiece". Flodin, too, wrote of a symphonic composition "the likes of which we have never had occasion to listen to before". Sibelius spent

SECTION 50

#1733085287375

5252-480: The fighting, his royalties from abroad were interrupted. To make ends meet, he composed smaller works for publication in Finland. In March 1915, he was able to travel to Gothenburg in Sweden, where his work The Oceanides was widely appreciated. While working on his Fifth Symphony in April, he saw 16 swans flying by, inspiring him to write the finale. "One of the great experiences of my life!" he commented. Although there

5353-489: The finale after returning to Järvenpää. Sibelius conducted his first concerts in Sweden in early 1911 when even his Third Symphony was welcomed by the critics. He completed the Fourth Symphony in April but, as he expected, with its introspective style it was not very warmly received when first performed in Helsinki with mixed reviews. Apart from a trip to Paris where he enjoyed a performance of Richard Strauss's Salome ,

5454-460: The first series to depict actual specific persons rather than allegorical figures. These included Juho Kusti Paasikivi on the 10 mk, K. J. Ståhlberg on the 50 mk, J. V. Snellman on the 100 mk and, controversially, Urho Kekkonen on the 500 mk, added in 1975 to commemorate the president's 75th birthday. Unlike Erik Bruun's series, this series did not depict any other real-life subjects, but only abstract ornaments in addition to

5555-521: The following years, including Luonnotar and the Fourth Symphony . In 1909, the successful throat operation resulted in renewed happiness between Sibelius and Aino in the family home. In Britain too, his condition was well received as he conducted En saga , Finlandia , Valse Triste and Spring Song to enthusiastic audiences. A meeting with Claude Debussy produced further support. After another uneventful trip to Paris, he went to Berlin where he

5656-407: The inflation, the markka was redenominated and replaced by a new markka worth 100 old markkaa. Finland joined the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1948. The value of the markka was pegged to the dollar at 320 mk = US$ 1, which became New 3.20 mk = US$ 1 in 1963 and devalued to 4.20 mk = US$ 1 in 1967. After the breakdown of the Bretton Woods agreement in 1971, a basket of currencies became

5757-403: The introduction of the euro, ECB produced €8,020 million in banknotes before the changeover. During the first weeks of 2002, Finland's replacement of previous national banknotes with euro banknotes was among the fastest in the euro area. Of the cash payments, three-fourths were paid in euro already at the end of the first changeover week. Coins and banknotes that were legal tender at the time of

5858-416: The introduction of the new markka in 1963. The old coins and banknotes were exchanged to new ones at 100:1 rate. The new markka coinage consisted initially of six denominations: 1 (bronze, later aluminium), 5 (bronze, later aluminium), 10 (aluminium-bronze, later aluminium), 20 and 50 penniä (aluminium-bronze) and 1 markka (silver, later cupro-nickel). The design of new coins (1963) was identical to those of

5959-506: The last issue of the old markka but with new denominations (i.e. 1 penni instead of 1 markka, etc.). From 1972, aluminium-bronze 5 mk were also issued. The last series of Finnish markka coins included five coins (listed with final euro values, rounded to the nearest cent): This section covers the last design series of the Finnish markka, designed in the 1980s by Torsten Ekström  [ fi ] and Finnish designer Erik Bruun and issued in 1986. In this final banknote series,

6060-406: The local Red Guard looking for weapons. During the first weeks of the war, some of his acquaintances were killed in the violence, and his brother, the psychiatrist Christian Sibelius, was arrested because he refused to reserve beds for the Red soldiers who had suffered shell shock at the front. Sibelius's friends in Helsinki were now worried about his safety. The composer Robert Kajanus negotiated with

6161-413: The long periods he spent studying in Vienna and Berlin, in 1900 he travelled to Italy, where he spent a year with his family. He composed, conducted and socialized actively in the Scandinavian countries, Britain, France and Germany and later travelled to the United States. While Sibelius was studying music in Helsinki in the autumn of 1888, Armas Järnefelt, a friend from the Music Institute, invited him to

SECTION 60

#1733085287375

6262-402: The market was gradually liberalized throughout the 1980s and the 1990s. The monetary policy called "strong markka policy" ( vahvan markan politiikka ) was a characteristic feature of the 1980s and early 1990s. The main architect of this policy was President Mauno Koivisto , who opposed floating the currency and devaluations. As a result, the nominal value of the markka was extremely high, and in

6363-460: The money to reduce his debts, he also spent a week celebrating to excess in Helsinki. At this time, Sibelius held detailed negotiations with George Eastman , inventor of the Kodak camera and founder of the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. Eastman offered $ 20,000 salary to teach for a single year, and before Sibelius declined, negotiations were so firm that the New York Times published Sibelius's arrival as fact. Sibelius enjoyed

6464-408: The most notable contribution to the music festival. While in America, Sibelius received an honorary doctorate from Yale University and, almost simultaneously, one from the University of Helsinki where he was represented by Aino. While travelling back from the United States, Sibelius heard about the events in Sarajevo that led to the beginning of the First World War . Although he was far away from

6565-439: The mother of Väinämöinen . Jean Sibelius composed the Finnish epic tone poem Luonnotar , for soprano and orchestra in 1913. In this work, the mythical origin of the land and sky (recounted in verses from the Kalevala ) becomes an intense Sibelian metaphor for the inexorable force of terror of all creation. Considered to be one of the composer's most compelling works, it alternates between two musical themes. As heard at

6666-415: The new reference. Inflation was high (over 5%) during 1971–85. Occasionally, devaluation was used, 60% in total between 1975 and 1990, allowing the currency to more closely follow the depreciating US dollar than the rising German mark . The paper industry, which mainly traded in US dollars, was often blamed for demanding these devaluations to boost their exports. Various economic controls were removed and

6767-426: The one-act opera The Maiden in the Tower ; chamber music , piano music, Masonic ritual music, and 21 publications of choral music . Sibelius composed prolifically until the mid-1920s, but after completing his Seventh Symphony (1924), the incidental music for The Tempest (1926), and the tone poem Tapiola (1926), he stopped producing major works in his last 30 years—a retirement commonly referred to as

6868-557: The outset, these are the shimmering stirrings of ever-growing possibility; and, underpinned with dissonant, static, harp strokes, the even more incantatory, distressed cries of the "nature spirit" ( Luonnotar ) herself, heavy with child. This article about a deity is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius ( / s ɪ ˈ b eɪ l i ə s / ; Finland Swedish: [siˈbeːliʉs] ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius ; 8 December 1865 – 20 September 1957)

6969-539: The price of the markka. Nokia , formerly traded in markka, was in 2000 the European company with the highest market capitalization . When the markka was introduced, coins were minted in copper (1, 5 and 10 penniä), silver (25p and 50p, 1 mk and 2 mk) and gold (10 mk and 20 mk). After the First World War , silver and gold issues were ceased and cupro-nickel 25p and 50p and 1 mk coins were introduced in 1921, followed by aluminium-bronze 5 mk, 10 mk and 20 mk between 1928 and 1931. During

7070-444: The rate was fixed at €1 = 5.94573 mk. The markka was replaced by the euro (€), which had been introduced, in cash form, on 1 March 2002. This was after a transitional period of three years, when the euro was the official currency but only existed as "book money" outside of the monetary base . The dual circulation period, when both the markka and the euro had legal tender status, ended on 28 February 2002. The name "markka"

7171-399: The rest of the year was fairly uneventful. In 1912, he completed his short orchestral work Scènes historiques II . It was first performed in March together with the Fourth Symphony. The concert was repeated twice to enthusiastic audiences and critics including Robert Kajanus. The Fourth Symphony was also well received in Birmingham in September. In March 1913, it was performed in New York but

7272-520: The restaurants. But he continued to compose, one of his major successes being Valse triste , one of six pieces of incidental music he composed for his brother-in-law Arvid Järnefelt 's play Kuolema (Death). Short of money, he sold the piece at a low price but it quickly gained considerable popularity not only in Finland but internationally. During his long stays in Helsinki, Sibelius's wife Aino frequently wrote to him, imploring him to return home but to no avail. Even after their fourth daughter, Katarina,

7373-461: The score, probably in 1945, during which year he certainly consigned a great many papers to the flames. His wife Aino recalled, In the 1940s there was a great auto da fé at Ainola. My husband collected a number of the manuscripts in a laundry basket and burned them on the open fire in the dining room. Parts of the Karelia Suite were destroyed – I later saw remains of the pages which had been torn out – and many other things. I did not have

7474-505: The staff of the Päivälehti newspaper, which had been suspended for a period after editorially criticizing Russian rule. The last tableau, Finland Awakens , was particularly popular; after minor revisions, it became the well-known Finlandia . In February 1900, the Sibelius' youngest daughter, Kirsti, died. Nevertheless, in the summer Sibelius went on an international tour with Kajanus and his orchestra, presenting his recent works (including

7575-471: The stage sets. While the first performance was difficult to appreciate over the background noise of the talkative audience, a second performance on 18 November was more successful. Furthermore, on the 19th and 23rd Sibelius presented an extended suite of the work in Helsinki, conducting the orchestra of the Philharmonic Society. Sibelius's music was increasingly presented in Helsinki's concert halls. In

7676-497: The strength to be present and left the room. I therefore do not know what he threw on to the fire. But after this my husband became calmer and gradually lighter in mood. Despite his withdrawing from the public eye, Sibelius's work gained substantial attention in the late 1920s and throughout the 1930s thanks to the newly established Finnish broadcaster YLE . Broadcasting on AM wavebands , YLE's signals brought Sibelius's music to listeners beyond Finland's borders, too. In 1933, YLE and

7777-714: The summer in Tvärminne near Hanko , where he worked on the song Var det en dröm (Was it a Dream) as well as on a new version of En saga . When it was performed in Berlin with the Berlin Philharmonic in November 1902, it served to firmly establish the composer's reputation in Germany, leading shortly afterwards to the publication of his First Symphony. In 1903, Sibelius spent much of his time in Helsinki where he indulged excessively in wining and dining, running up considerable bills in

7878-580: The tempi seem to be right. I think this is the first time that I have managed to make something complete." The work was also performed in Stockholm and Leipzig. In January 1899, Sibelius embarked on his First Symphony at a time when his patriotic feelings were being enhanced by the Russian emperor Nicholas II 's attempt to restrict the powers of the Grand Duchy of Finland . The symphony was well received when it

7979-578: The title of Fantasia sinfonica it received its first public performance in Stockholm where it was a success. It was even more highly appreciated at a series of concerts in Copenhagen in late September. Sibelius was honoured with the Knight Commander's Cross of the Order of the Dannebrog . He spent most of the rest of the year resting as his recent spate of activity was straining his heart and nerves. Composing

8080-422: The value of the markka fluctuated within +23%/−16% of its initial value, but with no trend. The markka suffered heavy inflation (91%) during 1914–18. Gaining independence in 1917, Finland returned to the gold standard from 1926 to 1931. While prices remained stable until 1940, the markka suffered heavy inflation (17% annually on average ) during World War II and again in 1956–57 (11%). In 1963, in order to reset

8181-520: The war in Kuwait. As a result, by some opinions years overdue, the artificial fixed exchange rate was abandoned and the markka was floated . Its value immediately decreased 13% and the inflated nominal prices converged towards German levels. In total, the value of the markka had decreased 40% as a result of the recession. Also, as a result, several entrepreneurs who had borrowed money denominated in foreign currency suddenly faced insurmountable debt. Inflation

8282-644: The world. His other best-known compositions are Finlandia , the Karelia Suite , Valse triste , the Violin Concerto , the choral symphony Kullervo , and The Swan of Tuonela (from the Lemminkäinen Suite ). His other works include pieces inspired by nature, Nordic mythology, and the Finnish national epic , the Kalevala ; over a hundred songs for voice and piano; incidental music for numerous plays;

8383-415: The year 1990, Finland was nominally the most expensive country in the world according to OECD 's Purchasing Power Parities report. Koivisto's policy was maintained only briefly after Esko Aho was elected Prime Minister. In 1991, the markka was pegged to the currency basket ECU , but the peg had to be withdrawn after two months with a devaluation of 12%. In 1992, Finland was hit by a severe recession ,

8484-521: The year conducting a series of concerts, the most successful being the first public performance of Pohjola's Daughter at the Mariinsky Theatre in St Petersburg. From the beginning of 1907, Sibelius again indulged in excessive wining and dining in Helsinki, spending exorbitant amounts on champagne and lobster. His lifestyle had a disastrous effect on the health of Aino who was driven to retire to

8585-408: The year ended he had also conducted concerts in Stockholm and Rome, the first to considerable acclaim, the second to mixed reviews. He then proceeded to Gothenburg where he enjoyed an ecstatic reception despite arriving at the concert hall suffering from over-indulgence in food and drink. Despite continuing to drink, to Aino's dismay, Sibelius managed to complete his Seventh Symphony in March 1924. Under

8686-495: Was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often credited with having helped Finland develop a stronger national identity when the country was struggling from several attempts at Russification in the late 19th century. The core of his oeuvre is his set of seven symphonies , which, like his other major works, are regularly performed and recorded in Finland and countries around

8787-479: Was awarded a substantial annual grant, initially for ten years and later extended for life. He was able to complete the music for Adolf Paul's play King Christian II . Performed on 24 February 1898, its catchy tunes appealed to the public. The scores of four popular pieces from the play were published in Germany and sold well in Finland. When the orchestral suite was successfully performed in Helsinki in November 1898, Sibelius commented: "The music sounded excellent and

8888-506: Was based on a medieval unit of weight. Both "markka" and "penni" are similar to words used in Germany for that country's former currency, based on the same etymological roots as the Deutsche Mark and pfennig . Although the word "markka" predates the currency by several centuries, the currency was established before being named "markka". A competition was held for its name, and some of the other entries included " sataikko " (meaning "having

8989-406: Was born, he continued to work away from home. Early in 1904, he finished his Violin Concerto but its first public performance on 8 February was not a success. It led to a revised, condensed version that was performed in Berlin the following year. In November 1903, Sibelius began to build his new home Ainola (Aino's Place) near Lake Tuusula some 45 km (30 miles) north of Helsinki. To cover

9090-511: Was clear: he felt he had written enough. The Finnish 100 mark note featured his image until 2002, when the euro was adopted. Since 2011, Finland has celebrated a flag flying day on 8 December, the composer's birthday, also known as the Day of Finnish Music. In 2015, in celebration of the 150th anniversary of Sibelius's birth, a number of special concerts and events were held, especially in Helsinki ,

9191-518: Was in Helsinki. The two agreed that with each new symphony, they lost those who had been attracted to their earlier works. This was demonstrated above all in St Petersburg where the Third Symphony was performed in November 1907 to dismissive reviews. Its reception in Moscow was rather more positive. In 1907, Sibelius underwent a serious operation for suspected throat cancer. Early in 1908, he had to spend

9292-636: Was its founder, Martin Wegelius, who did much to support the development of education in Finland. Wegelius gave the self-taught Sibelius his first formal lessons in composition. Another important influence was his teacher Ferruccio Busoni , a pianist-composer with whom he enjoyed a lifelong friendship. His close circle of friends included the pianist and writer Adolf Paul and the conductor-to-be Armas Järnefelt (who introduced him to his influential family, including his sister Aino who Sibelius would marry in 1892). The most remarkable of his works during this period

9393-522: Was little progress on the symphony during the summer, he was able to complete it by his 50th birthday on 8 December. On the evening of his birthday, Sibelius conducted the premiere of the Fifth Symphony in the hall of the Helsinki Stock Exchange . Despite high praise from Kajanus, the composer was not satisfied with his work and soon began to revise it. Around this time, Sibelius was running ever deeper into debt. The grand piano he had received as

9494-465: Was low during the markka's independent existence as a floating currency (1992–1999): 1.3% annually on average. The markka was added into the ERM system in 1996 and then became a fraction of the euro in 1999, with physical euro money arriving later in 2002. It has been speculated that if Finland had not joined the euro, market fluctuations such as the dot-com bubble would have reflected as wild fluctuations in

9595-550: Was premiered in Helsinki on 26 April 1899. But the program also premiered the even more compelling, blatantly patriotic Song of the Athenians for boys' and men's choirs. The song immediately brought Sibelius the status of a national hero. Another patriotic work followed on 4 November in the form of eight tableaux depicting episodes from Finnish history known as the Press Celebration Music . It had been written in support of

9696-552: Was relieved to learn that his throat operation had been entirely successful. Sibelius started work on his Fourth Symphony in early 1910 but his dwindling funds also required him to write a number of smaller pieces and songs. In October, he conducted concerts in Kristiania (now Oslo) where The Dryad and In Memoriam were first performed. His Valse triste and Second Symphony were particularly well received. He then travelled to Berlin to continue work on his Fourth Symphony, writing

9797-516: Was restored to good health after gallstone-excision surgery. Shortly after returning to Helsinki, Sibelius conducted his Overture and the Scène de Ballet at a popular concert. He was also able to continue working on Kullervo , now that he was increasingly developing an interest in all things Finnish. Premiered in Helsinki on 28 April 1892, the work was an enormous success. It was around this time that Sibelius finally abandoned his cherished aspirations as

9898-436: Was ten years old and later encouraged him to maintain his interest in composition. For Sibelius, Uncle Pehr not only took the place of a father but acted as a musical adviser. From an early age, Sibelius showed a strong interest in nature, frequently walking around the countryside when the family moved to Loviisa on the coast for the summer months. In his own words: "For me, Loviisa represented sun and happiness. Hämeenlinna

9999-587: Was the Violin Sonata in F, rather reminiscent of Grieg . Sibelius continued his studies in Berlin (from 1889 to 1890) with Albert Becker , and in Vienna (from 1890 to 1891) with Robert Fuchs and Hungarian-Jewish composer Karl Goldmark . In Berlin, he had the opportunity to widen his musical experience by going to a variety of concerts and operas, including the premiere of Richard Strauss 's Don Juan . He also heard

10100-522: Was unequalled in Western music. Finnish mark The markka ( Finnish : markka ; Swedish : mark ; sign : mk ; ISO code : FIM ), also known as the Finnish mark , was the currency of Finland from 1860 until 28 February 2002, when it ceased to be legal tender. The markka was divided into 100 pennies ( Finnish : penni ; Swedish : penni ), abbreviated as "p". At the point of conversion,

10201-469: Was where I went to school; Loviisa was freedom." In Hämeenlinna, when he was seven, Sibelius' aunt Julia was brought in to give him piano lessons on the family's upright instrument, rapping him on the knuckles whenever he played a wrong note. He progressed by improvising on his own, but still learned to read music. He later turned to the violin, which he preferred. He participated in trios with his elder sister Linda on piano, and his younger brother Christian on

#374625