The moving sharing of Sibelius' Symphony No. 4 in A minor

May 5, 2022

This set of Sibelius symphonies and CD covers are the most in line with my own listening mood, the scene of the aurora. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3ZlNYSsMexuvr6otqru4SL

Jean Sibelius: Symphony No 4 in A minor, Op 63

personal touch

Sibelius' seven symphonies have been listened to dozens of times. At first, only Symphony No. 4 thought it was too difficult to understand. Although I have always tried to understand it, it is the one I have touched the least.
After a few decades, I found that No. 4 is the most profound masterpiece.
It's just that it is dark and obscure , and it hides its artistic conception deeply . You can't eat it with your hands. You must enter its imaginary space to experience that boundless dream situation and picture.

Classical music blogger Schalke said: "I personally used to call this piece the Great Northern Wilderness Symphony , because it makes people feel the hardships in the wasteland, or the hardships of life, and the occasional joy is even more precious, like a cold Firelight in the night (of course it's pretty hard to play too)."

This blog has instructions for analyzing the music from a professional point of view from each note.

The word " Northern Wilderness " has a lot of love in my heart. When the first movement started, I was reminded of the night grasslands in the Arctic Circle . In the second and third movements, I was still immersed in the aurora , and the stinging cold. late night! If I close my eyes and listen alone, I may suddenly find myself wandering in the barren grass of the Arctic Circle at night, shivering and shrinking, and the northern lights in the sky are so beautiful and dreamlike.

The third and fourth movements return to the barren grasslands and frozen lakes in the daytime. Occasionally, there is a brisk and playful liveliness. I am afraid it is the warmth of the birds and plants that are occasionally seen above? Half of the snow-white splendor opens up hope. The endless vastness and insignificance make us realize that in this world, only with a generous heart can we absorb the air of the sea and become a great person.

The picture shows the photo of my cousin's expedition to the Arctic Circle in Canada. He was injured in distress and shouted to the earth with his crutches. Isn't this the spirit?

Tao Tianlin, the only expedition painter in Taiwan https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=716415403&fref=profile_friend_list&hc_location=friends_tab

Song History

Sibelius (Jean Sibelius, 1865-1957) Finnish composer, representative of romanticism in the late national music school. Symphony No. 4 was composed by Sibelius in 1911.

Sibelius had a throat tumor operation in 1908, which caused him to live in the painful shadow of recurrence for the next few years. Therefore, the despair and struggle in the song was his immediate pain, and the tragic and gloomy atmosphere melted into it. works. Sibelius himself said: "This is a symphony built on the mind."

The following is excerpted from Yun Weng's blog : This blog also has a very incisive explanation of the symphony.
"Scottish music scholar Cecil Gray (1895–1951) said that there is not a single superfluous note in this score from beginning to end, and its form is a milestone in the development of Sibelius' work. There is no such thing as a Appeals to the senses, so it will not become popular music, but for a few, it should be the greatest work of Sibelius. He probably did not write anything higher than this. According to Gray, this It was suddenly considered the supreme masterpiece of Sibelius' symphony."

Daxia is strongly recommended.

Sibelius: Symphony No. 4 in A minor, enjoy Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor