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Songs for Mixed Chorus from the 1897 Promotional Cantata

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Songs for Mixed Chorus from the 1897 Promotional Cantata
Song cycle by Jean Sibelius
The young composer (c. 1896)
Native nameLauluja sekaköörille 1897 vuoden promotiooni kantaatista
CatalogueJS 106 (original cantata)
Opus23 (song cycle)
TextA. V. Koskimies
LanguageFinnish
Composed1897 (1897), arr. 1897 or 1898
PublisherFazer & Westerlund [fi] (1899)[1][a]
Duration19.5 mins. (Op. 23)[3][b]
Premiere
Date5 June 1897 (1897-30-05) (JS 104)[4]
LocationHelsinki, Grand Duchy of Finland
ConductorJean Sibelius
Performers

The Songs for Mixed Chorus from the 1897 Promotional Cantata (in Finnish: Lauluja sekaköörille 1897 vuoden promotiooni kantaatista; sometimes abbreviated as the Nine Songs), Op. 23, is a song cycle of a cappella pieces[c] for soprano, baritone, and mixed choir a cappella arranged in 1898 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. Sung in Finnish to words by the poet A. V. Koskimies, the songs were originally part of a larger orchestral work: the Cantata for the University Graduation Ceremonies of 1897 (Kantaatti tohtorinja maisterinvihkijäisissä 1897), JS 106. It is chronologically the third of Sibelius's nine orchestral cantatas, and belongs to a series of three such pieces—along with the Promotional Cantata of 1894 (JS 105) and the Coronation Cantata (JS 104, 1896)—that he wrote on commission from his employer at the time, the Imperial Alexander University (today the University of Helsinki). The complete score, however, is lost, although—in addition to the Op. 23 songs—some orchestral parts, as well as a rehearsal score with piano accompaniment, are extant.

Structure

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The ten constituent songs in the cycle are as follows:

  1. March-like (Marssin tapaan); "We the youth of Finland ..." ("Me nuoriso Suomen ...")
  2. Not too leisurely (Ei lüan verkalleen); "The wind rocks ..." ("Tuuli tuudittele ...")
  3. Lightly (Keveästi); "Oh hope, hope, you dreamer ..." ("Oi toivo, toivo, sä lietomieli ...")
  4. Quickly (Nopeean); "Many on the sea of life ..." ("Montapa elon merellä ...")
  5. Leisurely (Verkalleen); "The fading thoughts of the Earth ..." ("Sammuva sainio maan ...")
    • (a) Like a folk-song, briskly (Kansanlaulun tapaan, reippaasti); "We praise Thee, our Creator ..." ("Soi kiitokseksi Luojan ...")
    • (b) Simply (Yksinkertaisesti); "Blow, wind, more gently ..." ("Tuule, tuuli, leppeämmin ...")
  7. Briskly (Reippaasti); "O love, your realm is limitless ..." ("Oi Lempi, sun valtas ääretön on ...")
  8. March-like (Marssin tapaan); "As the swift current ..." ("Kun virta vuolas ...")
  9. Festively (Juhlallisesti); "O precious Finland, Mother beyond compare ..." ("Oi kallis Suomi, äiti verraton ...")

Several of the song cycle's numbers, especially Nos. 1, 6a, and 6b, remain popular in Finland.[5] Moreover, in 1913, Sibelius arranged No. 6a for female choir.[6]

Discography

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The Finnish choral director Heikki Halme [fi] and the Eteläsuomalaisen Osakunnan Laulajatm (EOL)[d] made the world premiere studio recording of the Op. 23 songs in 1975 for RCA Victor.[1] The table below lists this and other commercially available recordings:

No. Choral director Ensemble Soprano Baritone Runtime[e] Rec.[f] Recording venue Label Ref.
1 Heikki Halme [fi] Eteläsuomalaisen Osakunnan Laulajat[d] Terhikki Kilpiö Kari Tamminen 19:23 1975 Helsinki German Church [fi] RCA Victor
[g]
2 Astrid Riska (1) Jubilate Choir [fi] (1) Monica Groop (1) Juha Kotilainen [fi] 19:14 1992 Järvenpää Hall [fi] Ondine
[h]
3 Hannu Norjanen Tapiola Chamber Choir [fi] Pia Freund [fi] Antti Suhonen [fi] 20:09 1997 Roihuvuori Church [fi] Finlandia
[i]
4 Astrid Riska (2) Jubilate Choir [fi] (2) Monica Groop (2) Sauli Tülikainen [fi] 19:18 1998 Tapiola Hall BIS
[j]
5 Heikki Seppanen Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir Jenny Carlstedt [fi] Arttu Kataja [fi] 18:36 2014 Järvenpää Hall [fi] Ondine
[k]

Notes, references, and sources

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Notes
  1. ^ On 20 July 1905, the Helsinki-based music publisher Fazer & Westerlund [fi] (Helsingfors Nya Musikhandel) sold its Sibelius holdings (the publishing rights and printing plates) to the German firm of Breitkopf & Härtel.[2]
  2. ^ The duration of the original cantata is unknown, because the original score is lost.
  3. ^ This excludes No. 8, for which bass drum, triangle, and cymbals provide accompaniment.
  4. ^ a b The literal English translation of Eteläsuomalaisen Osakunnan Laulajat is the "Singers Association of Southern Finland".
  5. ^ All runtimes are official, as printed on CD or LP liner notes.
  6. ^ Refers to the year in which the performers recorded the work; this may not be the same as the year in which the recording was first released to the general public.
  7. ^ EOL–RCA Victor (YFPL 1–853) 1976
  8. ^ Jubilate Choir–Ondine (ODE 805–2) 1993
  9. ^ Tapiola Chamber Choir–Finlandia (0630–19054–2) 1998
  10. ^ Jubilate Choir–BIS (CD–998) 1999
  11. ^ Estonian Phil. Chamber Choir–Ondine (ODE 1260–2D) 2015
References
  1. ^ a b Dahlström 2003, p. 96.
  2. ^ Dahlström 2003, p. xxiv.
  3. ^ Dahlström 2003, pp. 92–96.
  4. ^ Dahlström 2003, p. 92.
  5. ^ Ylivuori 2015, p. 11.
  6. ^ Dahlström 2003, p. 98.
Sources
  • Barnett, Andrew (2007). Sibelius. New Haven, Connecticut: Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-16397-1.
  • Dahlström, Fabian [in Swedish] (2003). Jean Sibelius: Thematisch-bibliographisches Verzeichnis seiner Werke [Jean Sibelius: A Thematic Bibliographic Index of His Works] (in German). Wiesbaden: Breitkopf & Härtel. ISBN 3-7651-0333-0.
  • Hovinen, Juha (1998). Sibelius: Complete Choral Songs for Mixed, Female, and Children's Voices (CD booklet). Translated by Mäntyjärvi, Jaakko. Hannu Norjanen & Tapiola Chamber Choir. Finlandia. p. 12–21. 0630–19054–2. OCLC 42657350
  • Tawaststjerna, Erik (2008) [1965/1967; trans. 1976]. Sibelius: Volume I, 1865–1905. Translated by Layton, Robert. London: Faber and Faber. ISBN 978-0-571-24772-1.
  • Ylivuori, Sakari (2015). Sibelius: Complete Works for Mixed Choir (CD booklet). Translated by Mäntyjärvi, Jaakko. Heikki Seppänen & Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir. Ondine. p. 6–7. ODE 1260–2D. OCLC 907135077
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