Rautavaara: Cantus Arcticus; Piano Concerto (1998)

Discovering Rautavarra

One of the many virtues of the budget Naxos lablel is the variety of music offered to the adventurous or simply curious listener. The depth and range of its catalog is astonishing. I thought I had been spending too much time listening to composers and music that I already knew. I needed to hear something different. I decided to try this CD of works by the contemporary Finnish composer, Einojuhani Rautavaara (b.1928) who, I knew vaguely, had been influenced greatly by Sibelius and had been compared to the American composer, Alan Hovahness. I also knew that the late Bob Zeidler thought highly of Rautavaara and had reviewed his work, including the CD I am discussing here.

This CD is an excellent introduction to the work of this composer and includes three selections in varied musical styles. It is also on "Gramophone's" recommended list. The disk includes the composer's symphony no. 3, piano concerto no. 1 and his "Cantus Arcticus" (Concerto for Birds and Orchestra) which features a taping of birds from the Artic Circle and the Far North.

The work that impressed me most, upon my initial hearings, was the three-movement piano concerto no. 1 opus 45 which Rautavaara composed in 1969 and which he has played as a soloist on several occasions. It is performed here by a young Finnish pianist, Laura Mikkola, whom I also hadn't heard before, and the Royal scottish National Orchestra conducted by Hannu Lintu.

The work opens with a big piano solo, with large, dissonant chords over a running bass. The orchestra enters at last in a loud passage embellishing the piano part. Throughout this movement, as in much of the Rautavaara on this CD, there is great use of contrast between bold, flamboyant writing and quieter, meditative passages. The second movement also opens with a piano solo, this time in a subdued choral passage interspersed with rippling runs. The movement works up to a climax with clanging cymbols, dies down, and ends with alternating big chords and light rippling piano figures. The brief, quickly-paced third movement follows the second without pause. It begins with sudden downward arpeggios in the piano, works to a moment of great intensity, and ends with the sound of high, shrill winds. It is a stunning concerto.

Rautavaara's symphony no. 3 op. 20 reminds me in its goals (not in its sound) of the work of George Rochberg in that both composers take modernist, serial writing and infuse them with music of great romantic intensity. There are again great stylistic contrasts within the piece with surging, intense climaxes alternating with moments of lyricism. Sibelius, in modern musical vocabulary, is much in evidence. The work opens with a flute solo, and, in the remainder of the lengthy first movement, the winds and strings gradually join in. There is a dramatic climax followed by a full stop, near the end of the movement and a taut, quiet conclusion. The second movement is also in slow tempo and opens with a chirping flute followed by a bassoon solo. The pattern again leads to a dramatic climax and a quiet close. The third scherzo-like movement opens with a sharp, angular phrase and alternates dramatic rhythmic passages with quieter sections. Again, the music comes to a big full stop near the end before an abrupt close. The finale opens with a brass fanfare, which the composer himself analogizes to Bruckner, works to a climax featuring the brass and finally closes quietly on a dirge-like note. This work grew on me with several hearings.

Probably Rautavaara's best-known work is the "Cantus Arcticus" opus 61. The composer travelled to the remote reaches of Finland to record a tape of Arctic birds and to integrate their songs in his music. The music is lovely and austure, to my hearing, and the birds complement it beautifully. The three-movement work is programatic in character. The first movement titled "The Marsh" opens with solo flute gradually followed by the bird tape. In general the orchestral passages in this work feature long, repetitive lines ornamented by the birds. The first movement ultimately leads to a long, melancholy theme in the cello repeated in the upper strings to the twitterings of the birds. The second movement, "Melancholy" opens with muted strings to the accompaniment of the birds The melody is repeated and intensified and then gradually fades away. The third movement, "Swan Migrating" opens with the birds followed by a quiet figure in the winds. It leads to a sinuous, sensual lengthy, and repeated melody in the strings which captures the spirit of the moving birds and then quietly fades away.

This is a lovely CD, and it encouraged me to learn more of this composer. Listeners wanting to expand their musical knowledge of contemporary works will enjoy this disk.