Leevi Madetoja
Born: February 17, 1887; Oulu, Finland
Died: October 6, 1947; Helsinki, Finland
|
In the generation that followed Jean Sibelius, the versatile Leevi Madetoja was easily among the most important Finnish composers. Like Sibelius, Madetoja composed symphonies that helped define his stature: indeed, his three are still his most recorded works, even if they remain well outside the standard repertory. His opera Pohjalaisia (The Ostrobothnians; 1923) has also received considerable attention, especially in his homeland, and his ballet
...
Read more
|
 |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
Works
|
|
A flower is purest when opening (1)
|
|
Autumn, Op. 68 (3)
|
|
Autumn, Op. 68: no 3, You thought I was watching you (4)
|
|
Barcarola, Op. 67 no 2 (1)
|
|
By Winter Moonlight, Op. 26 no 5 (1)
|
|
Cast off thy everyday cares (3)
|
|
Chess Suite, Op. 5 (1)
|
|
Chess Suite, Op. 5: no 1 - Festive March (1)
|
|
Come with me, Op. 9 no 3 (2)
|
|
Comedy Overture, Op. 53 (3)
|
|
Concert Overture, Op. 7 (1)
|
|
Crystal Flowers, Op. 16 no 2 (1)
|
|
Dance vision, Op. 11 (1)
|
|
Dark herbs, Op. 9 no 1 (2)
|
|
De profundis, Op. 56 (2)
|
|
Enkelien joululaulu (The Angels' Carol), for chorus (1)
|
|
Farewell, Op. 26 no 1 (1)
|
|
Father, whither fly the swans?, Op. 44 no 2 (1)
|
|
Folk Songs (3) for chorus, Op. 57 (1)
|
|
Folk Songs from Northern Ostrobothnia, Op. 18: A mother's son so plump (1)
|
|
Folk Songs from Northern Ostrobothnia, Op. 18: Birds sing (1)
|
|
Folk Songs from Northern Ostrobothnia, Op. 18: From tavern to tavern (1)
|
|
Folk Songs from Northern Ostrobothnia, Op. 18: Let's ride in a cart, boys (1)
|
|
Folk Songs from Northern Ostrobothnia, Op. 18: My mother thought when she had that boy (1)
|
|
Freedom March, Op. 42 no 4 (1)
|
|
Geisha, Op. 9 no 5 (1)
|
|
Hopes & Dreams, for chorus, Op. 50 (1)
|
|
Hypnos Smiled, Op. 9 no 2 (1)
|
|
Integer Vitae, for chorus, Op. 72/1 (1)
|
|
Juha, Op 74 (1)
|
|
Juha, Op 74: Rapids Shooting (1)
|
|
Juha, Op 74: Tragic Episode (1)
|
|
Julens budskap (Christmas Tidings), carol for chorus (1)
|
|
Kullervo, Op. 15 (2)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 16: Serenade (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 25: Birth-place (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 25: From afar I hear them singing (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 25: Sometimes weeping in the evening (2)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 25: Wintry road (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 26: I would build a hut (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 2: Alone (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 2: Since thou didst leave (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 2: Starry night (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 2: Winter morning (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 44: Song at the plough (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 49: Finland's Tree (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 49: Hail, O daylight in the North (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 60: Evening (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 60: My longing (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 71: I want to go home (2)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 71: The word of the Master (1)
|
|
Lieder, Op. 9: Dark-hued leaves (1)
|
|
Lullaby (1)
|
|
Lullaby, Op. 16 no 3 (1)
|
|
Lyric Suite for Cello and Piano, Op. 51 (1)
|
|
Lyrical Songs (6) for chorus, Op. 13 (1)
|
|
Miniatures for Piano, Op. 21 (1)
|
|
National Scenes (3) for chorus, Op. 30a (1)
|
|
Okon Fuoko, Op. 58 (1)
|
|
Okon Fuoko, Op. 58: Song of Yiai no 1 (1)
|
|
Okon Fuoko, Op. 58: Song of Yiai no 2 (1)
|
|
Okon Fuoko, Op. 58: Suite (3)
|
|
On the Banks of Vuoksi River: To an Unfaithful One (1)
|
|
Pieces (3) for Piano, Op. 17 (1)
|
|
Pieces (6) for Piano, Op. 12 (1)
|
|
Pieces for Piano, Op. 31 (1)
|
|
Pieces for Piano, Op. 34 "Pastoral Suite" (2)
|
|
Pieces for Piano, Op. 65 (1)
|
|
Prayer, Op. 9 no 4 (1)
|
|
Romance sans paroles, Op. 36 (1)
|
|
Sea Wind, Op. 26 no 4 (1)
|
|
Seimeen syntynyt (Born in a Manger), carol for chorus (1)
|
|
Since you left me, Op. 2 no 1 (1)
|
|
Soft Wing, Op. 26 no 2 (1)
|
|
Song of the winter wind (1)
|
|
Songs of Youth, Op. 20b: A foal for wooing (1)
|
|
Songs of Youth, Op. 20b: Christmas song (1)
|
|
Songs of Youth, Op. 20b: Music of Finland (1)
|
|
Songs of Youth, Op. 20b: no 5, Arkihuolesi kaikki heitä (Cast Off Thy Everyday Cares) (1)
|
|
Songs of Youth, Op. 20b: Someone else's own (1)
|
|
Songs of Youth, Op. 20b: Song of the skiers (1)
|
|
Spiritual Songs (3) for chorus, Op. 30b (1)
|
|
Spring Song, Op. 44 no 4 (1)
|
|
Swing, swing, Op. 60 no 1 (2)
|
|
Symphonic Suite, Op. 4 (1)
|
|
Symphonic Suite, Op. 4: no 1, Elegia (1)
|
|
Symphony no 1 in F major, Op. 29 (2)
|
|
Symphony no 2 in E flat major, Op. 35 (3)
|
|
Symphony no 3 in A major, Op. 55 (2)
|
|
Take up that fair kantele again (1)
|
|
The Garden of Death, Op. 41 (1)
|
|
The golden-white light of heaven, Op. 44 no 3 (1)
|
|
The land in our song (1)
|
|
The Ostrobothnians Suite, Op. 52 (2)
|
|
The Struggle for the Homestead: Rustic Scenes, Op. 77 (1)
|
|
Tuolla taivaan asunnoissa (1)
|
|
Two Onerva Songs, for chorus, Op. 82 (1)
|
|
Windy Weather, Op. 25 no 3 (1)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| More Featured Leevi Madetoja CDs & DVDs: |
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
Biography |
by Robert Cummings
|
In the generation that followed Jean Sibelius, the versatile Leevi Madetoja was easily among the most important Finnish composers. Like Sibelius, Madetoja composed symphonies that helped define his stature: indeed, his three are still his most recorded works, even if they remain well outside the standard repertory. His opera Pohjalaisia (The Ostrobothnians; 1923) has also received considerable attention, especially in his homeland, and his ballet Okon Fuoko (1930) and many of his songs have rightly garnered acclaim as well. Madetoja employed folk melodies from Ostrobothnia (the region of Finland where he was born), and many of these divulge a modal or religious character in their somber and sometimes stern character. Madetoja wrote in an accessible, though often dark style and was a master of orchestration, known for clarity of textures and subtle instrumental color.
Leevi Madetoja was born in Oulu, Finland, on February 17, 1887. He was raised by his mother, owing to his father's premature death from tuberculosis. Musically, Madetoja did not develop quickly: his first advanced training came in the period 1906-1910 in Helsinki, when he studied at the university there and at the Music Institute, where his most important teacher was Sibelius.
Madetoja's 1909 Elegy, for string orchestra, was an instant success. Though he followed that with other acclaimed scores, including the incidental music for the play Chess Game (1910), he continued studies over the next two years in Paris with Vincent d'Indy and in both Vienna and Berlin with Robert Fuchs.
From 1912-1914 Madetoja served as conductor of the Helsinki Philharmonic Society Orchestra, and then led the Viipuri (Finland) Orchestra from 1914-1916. He remained active as a composer during these years, producing such works as his Stabat Mater (1915), for female chorus, strings, and organ.
In 1916 Madetoja joined the faculty at the Helsinki Music Institute and at the same time began writing music criticism for the popular daily newspaper Helsingin sanomat. In 1926 Madetoja composed what many consider his finest symphony, the Third (1926), a work that has often been compared with the Sibelius Third.
Madetoja retired from teaching in 1939, but remained active in his final years as a composer. The Fourth Symphony, supposedly complete in manuscript form, might well have further solidified Madetoja's reputation, but it vanished when the briefcase that held it was stolen in a French railway station. Madetoja died in Helsinki on October 6, 1947. |
| |
|
