BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
If you think this winter is cold, try to imagine what Sibelius experienced during his life in Finland. Yet, his love for the Scandinavian country resulted in some of the greatest musical works ever written. Celebrating the 150th anniversary of Sibelius’ birth, Melbourne’s Flinders Quartet will perform his music between 4-5 July at the Kew Court House before journeying to the composer’s homeland. There, the ensemble will play in the Sibelius and Korpo Festival. Cellist Zoe Knighton gives us insight into the composer, his string works, and the beauty of Scandinavian music.
Tell us about your personal journey with Sibelius.
My personal journey with Sibelius began when I was studying ballet and had dreams of becoming a ballerina. We were dancing to his ‘Swan of Tuonela’ and having the chance to move to that music made the experience of it even more vivid. I was totally captivated and the piece still has a very special meaning for me.
Once I had made up my mind to be a musician, I was perpetually involved in youth orchestras and one of the first big symphonies I played was his second symphony. It was certainly a challenge to get my fingers around it at a young age, but the mood created by the orchestral textures and the long flowing musical lines totally captivated me.
To be honest, I hadn’t played any of his chamber works until this year. It is like being introduced to a new food – I remember having sushi for the first time at university and it quickly becoming a staple. I think my relationship with Sibelius’ chamber music is like that – it has quickly become one of my staples!
It’s been 150 years since Sibelius was born – what do you think were some of the most important events celebrating the composer in the years since?
In Australia, many orchestras are playing his most loved symphonies (2, 5, 6 and 7) but ours is the only festival concentrating on his smaller works. Of course, the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra recorded a marvellous cycle of symphonies and his fourth string quartet ‘Voces Intimae’ was recently played in its chamber orchestra form by Melbourne Chamber Orchestra. Sibelius didn’t compose much at all for the last 30 years of his life and one thing that the quartet is looking forward to immensely is paying homage to this great composer at his last resting place, Ainola in Finland when we tour there in July.
What can Sibelius’ music tell us about the magic of Scandinavia?
Well, the world seems quite fascinated by Scandavian music – but apart from ABBA and Bjork, I would be happy to go out on a limb and say that Sibelius is the best known ‘classical’ composer from that region. In the twentieth century, there were a number of composers who are still making their mark today – Rautavaara, Sallinen and Esa Pekka Salonen to name a few. Salonen also heralds the vanguard of a prodigious conducting school in Finland. Our very own Benjamin Northey (associate conductor of the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra) studied in Finland and we are reaping the benefits of that right here in Melbourne!
Carl Nielsen also has his anniversary year in 2015 and his string quartets are equally worth a listen. The approach and musical language is rather more intense than Sibelius but they are riveting. Given that their winters are quite bleak, their compositions more than make up for that. Interestingly, the popular Colourstrings method was developed in Finland and this imaginative method of teaching string instruments has spread all around the world.
What does your upcoming concert program say about Sibelius? How can we hear Finland in his music?
We are playing all four of his string quartets. They range from the first one, written when he was just 17, to his last which was written when he was 44. After this, the only chamber music he wrote before his death at the age of nearly 92 was Andante Festivo.
The four quartets trace his student years, and witnessing the compositional development from the first to the fourth is like being party to a young man’s voice breaking. The change from good student to master composer is so dramatic and life changing. The first three quartets by Sibelius are hardly ever played, but they deserve a place alongside the famous ‘Voces Intimae’ (his fourth quartet).
The piano quintet was written when he was just 25, but it is an extremely mature work. Like many musicians and composers, he came from a family of musicians and so much of his music was played by his siblings. It is the musical conversations in chamber music that make it so interesting and we are really excited to be joined by our dear colleague Stefan Cassomenos for this performance. We have been looking for an excuse to play with him for years and are keen admirers of his musicianship.
The smaller works (‘Andante Festivo’, ‘Fugue for Martin Wegelius’, ‘Adagio in D minor’, ‘Scherzo’ and ‘Moderato’ and the four little themes) are all from his student years and one can hear his symphonic voice emerging. Playing these pieces is like looking through a photo album containing old photos of a well known person. They are instantly recognisable as Sibelius and it is a complete joy to hear what led to some of the best loved symphonic repertoire.
Sibelius uses themes akin to folk music and indeed, his work ‘Finlandia’ is strongly associated with his homeland. I think with any strongly nationalistic music, there is a universality about the patriotic sound. It does sound quite ironic to call a patriotic sound ‘universal’, but when playing his ‘Andante Festivo’, one hears a certain pride and uprightness about the music that immediately stirs emotion. Sibelius was enamoured with nature and this is certainly reflected in some of the long musical lines. We are looking forward to visiting Finland and placing his music in context. I’m sure the richness of the landscape will match his soundscape.
For more information on the Flinders Quartet Sibelius Festival events between 4-5 July, head to www.kewcourthouse.com.au.
Image supplied.
