Fate & guilt

Tüür’s Saxophone Concerto

The Estonian composer Erkki-Sven Tüür is known among faithful Baltic Sea Festival-goers. This is the third time one of his works are featured in the programme. Tüür, one of Estonia’s most successful contemporary composers, works within a postmodern tradition in which texture, atmosphere and narrative play a prominent role. We can expect the same from his Saxophone Concerto, receiving its world premiere at the Baltic Sea Festival’s closing concert. The work will be performed by the Ukrainian star soloist Asya Fateyeva, celebrated for her beautiful saxophone tone and sensitive interpretations.

Kullervo: Sibelius’s Tale of Siblings and Tragedy

Elias Lönnrot wrote it down, but it was Jean Sibelius who carried it out into the world. That is one way, admittedly a simplified one, of describing how the Finnish-Estonian national epic Kalevala journeyed from a regional tradition to an internationally recognised literary work. Yet the movement also ran in the opposite direction. It was by turning to Finland’s literary heritage that Sibelius achieved his first major breakthrough as a composer at home.

Kullervo was written by the young Sibelius in the early 1890s. In this five-movement work for orchestra, singers, male choir and vocal soloists, he portrays the ill-fated Kullervo, the son of a god, or more precisely, of a giant, who despite his valiant efforts is unable to escape his predetermined fate.

When Kullervo premiered in Helsinki in 1892, it was met with enthusiasm from both critics and audiences. National Romantic currents in the arts were on the rise, and many sought to free themselves from Russian influence over the country. Add to this Sibelius’s gift for writing grand music that strikes directly at the listener without ever seeming banal, and the result could only be a resounding success.

In Search of the Origins of the Kalevala

The mysteries of the Kalevala fascinated Sibelius so deeply that he chose Karelia in eastern Finland, believed to be the birthplace of the myths, as the destination for his honeymoon. Perhaps there was also something in Kullervo’s fate that appealed to him. There is a suggestive and almost sensual quality to the story of the doomed young man who cannot evade the disasters awaiting him.

Enslaved in his youth, Kullervo eventually breaks free, only to seal his fate when he unknowingly seduces and commits a “blood sin” with his long-lost sister. It is a tale steeped in destiny, one that aligns perfectly with the composer’s artistic temperament, where light and darkness are always intertwined in a strikingly tangible way. At the Baltic Sea Festival’s closing concert, the unfortunate Kullervo will be sung by the Swedish baritone Peter Mattei, while his sister will be portrayed by the Greek soprano Aphrodite Patoulidou.

Sibelius’s First Symphony?

Kullervo foreshadowed the symphonies that Sibelius had yet to write. Musicologists remain divided on whether the work should be described as the Finnish master’s first symphony, although in form it is certainly deserving of the title. In a letter, Sibelius himself is said to have expressed dissatisfaction with the subtitle “symphonic poem”; in his view, Kullervo was a symphony.

On the other hand, only a few years after its premiere he withdrew the work from the repertoire. It was not performed again during his lifetime, apart from the Kalevala anniversary celebrations in 1935. After Sibelius’s death, it was his son-in-law who rediscovered the score and brought it back to public attention.

Whatever one’s position in the debate, Kullervo remains a work of extraordinary fascination, both in its own right and as a foretaste of the remarkable cycle of symphonies that would follow.

Text: Edith Söderström