Rautavaara - Cantus Arcticus (1972) 1/2

[66Kossu]

I heard this masterpiece for the first time a few days ago in Helsinki in a new Helsinki Music Centre. This "Concerto for Birds and Orchestra" was conducted by Leif Segerstam and band was Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra. Especially i love the way how Segerstam listened the sound of arctic birds and how he and orchesrta bacame a part of it. Hymn-like melodies made me also deep impression.

[ppalmtop]

cbreemer, are you still there?

I heard the Rautavaara Cantus Articus on BBC R3 a few days ago.

Liked it a lot.

Can you let me have the link to "RSNO on Naxos" please.

TIA

palmtop9

[cbreemer]

An absolute masterpiece, thanks for posting. Rautavaara is a totally original composer.

This is a good performance though not as sumptuous and compelling as the one by the RSNO on Naxos.

[Teonareine]

I searched and the first part, the work is fantastically beautiful !

Thanks !

Teona.

[swswswswswwsssw]

thanks for putting this in youtube

[petfried]

O, Please do!

[petfried]

this is my favourite version of this stunning piece of music. thank you for putting this on youtube. - why didn't you put up the entire concerto???

[bartje11]

@petfried copyright....... I might try to up-load it again. 

[neonwind]

brilliant! just discovered this Gem!

[valteraleksei]

I would have never started making music if it wasn't for this masterpiece and Einojuhani Rautavaara. I listened to this since I was about 4 years old.. Those birds are recorded on nearby marshes from where I live by the way - if you have once been there you can understand this composition.

[Jubalover]

When this was written in the early 70's using tape loops of nature sounds was first made popular among composers who wanted to reflect their home cultures in the boom of Earth Day's effect and the new concern for the worlds environment. Alan Hovhaness did the same thing in America using blue whale sounds in his Tone Poem, ''AND GOD CREATED GREAT WHALES''.

[anonyymi1234]

This is better than any work of Sibelius imo.

[MuseDuCafe]

The composer subtitled this work, a "Concerto for Birds." Its about the best done of any I have heard with taped birdsong included. Wonderful piecel

[Then there is Messiaen, who annotated and incorporated hundreds of birdsongs in his music!]

[DeftFlow]

One of Frankenstein's earliest compositions

[ozzymandi]

Sublime. I heard this magnificent music on the radio many years ago , but did not hear the name of the composer. I found this a a luck accident. Thank you so much for posting , Its incredeble.

[ErikdeHaan87]

one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written!

[DeathI0k]

I need to listen this, cause I have music test at school.

[moseleych]

how did they create the bird noises?

[thallocub]

@moseleych it's a tape recording. Well, traditionally u call it tape, surely now it is an audio file...

[Fredsmellsamazing]

@moseleych In proper performances that are faithful to the original, they'll get a bird of each Arctic species and squeeze them at the appropriate moment. Campaigners try to stop the practice, but of course it still goes on. Often they'll need spare birds, too. The smaller species don't always last the duration of the piece.

[yonhenki]

@Fredsmellsamazing You funny man, I like that humor!

The Bird voices are on a cd/audio file and are played in the correct time from that. Many bird-mimicking voices from instruments also occur, for example the trumpet short notes are supposed to be swan voices.

[andronikosb]

@Fredsmellsamazing :-))

[Kunstwissenschaftler]

Гений! Очень люблю этого финского композитора.

[PhillipLWilcher]

Incredible!

[mezzogal]

So haunting. And beautiful.

[TheGreatGreekGatsby]

one of the best of rautavaara- I think it was his univerity diploma- composition or something :-)

thanks for posting

[perjus]

This was composed for the very first doctorate and master promotion held in Oulu university.

[Halibye]

@perjus too bad nowadays getting a masters degree isn't worth a symphony

[Naujlo]

Oh thank you so much for posting this piece! One of my favorites!

[ZiRRoSiS]

precioso...que primeras notas mas sublimes...como capta la esencia...