Einojuhani Rautavaara (1928-2016)

July 29, 2016 12:28 AM

The Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara died on Wednesday at the age of 87. He wrote eight symphonies, nine operas, 12 instrumental concertos, plus a wide variety of orchestral, chamber, instrumental, choral and vocal works.

Some examples of his music:

- Fiddlers for string orchestra (1952).
- A Requiem in Our Time for brass ensemble (1953).
- Symphony no. 3 (1961).
- Piano Concerto no. 1 (1969).
- Vigilia ('All-Night Vigil in Memory of St. John the Baptist for mixed choir and soloists' / 1971-2).
- Cantus Arcticus (Concerto for Birds and Orchestra / 1972).
- Annunciations (Concerto for Organ / 1977).
- Angels and Visitations (1978).
- Angel of Dusk (Concerto for double bass / 1980) [previously].
- Symphony no. 7 ('Angel of Light' / 1994).
- Rasputin (opera / 2001-3).
- Incantations (Concerto for Percussion / 2008).

posted by misteraitch (7 comments total)

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posted by palmcorder_yajna at 1:17 AM on July 29, 2016

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His brother's children were my landlords last year. When showing the house they described where the piano was and how he would play for them during family gatherings.

A shared house.
posted by infini at 3:50 AM on July 29, 2016 [3 favorites]

Oh, no. One of my longtime favorite composers to sing and to listen to; there really has been no one like him. Putting the Vigilia on now to wallow around in.

Don't miss the Suite de Lorca (for mixed choir a cappella), either. Just 6-7 minutes and packs so much in.

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posted by dorque at 3:51 AM on July 29, 2016

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posted by seyirci at 5:29 AM on July 29, 2016

Aw, nuts. One of my favorites.
posted by Rich Smorgasbord at 2:49 PM on July 29, 2016

But... He can continue to make some guy on the other side of the world happy.
posted by Rich Smorgasbord at 2:51 PM on July 29, 2016

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posted by Kattullus at 6:44 AM on July 30, 2016