Einojuhani Rautavaara
Works for Mixed Chorus
Finnish Radio Chamber Choir · Eric-Olof Söderström, conductor
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Einojuhani Rautavaara
Complete Works for Male Choir
YL Male Voice Choir
Matti Hyökki, conductor
Talla Vocal Ensemble
Pasi Hyökki, conductor
...released on the occasion of Einojuhani Rautavaara\
Track listing
37 tracks · 96:21Listen to samples on selected tracks.
CD 1
Einojuhani Rautavaara
- 1 Lauluja (The Singer) (1956) 2:30
- 2 Syksy virran suussa (Autumn at the Rivermouth) (1965/1995) 2:49
- Two Preludes of T.S. Eliot (1956/1967)
- 3 I. Winter Evening 2:08
- 4 II. The Morning Comes 0:44
- Kaksi psalmia (Two Psalms)for male choir (1968/1971)
- 5 23 2:41
- 6 130 2:34
- 7 Ave Maria (1957) 3:24
- 8 Joulun virsi (Christmas Hymn)for male choir (1953) 1:32
- Elämän kirja (A Book of Life) (1972)
- 9 I. Kindheit (Childhood) 3:53
- 10 II. Ma bohème (My Bohemian life) 2:32
- 11 III. L'Amoureuse (One in love) 1:10
- 12 IV. Vanitas! Vanitatum vanitas 3:24
- 13 V. Hope is the Thing with Feathers 1:13
- 14 VI. Are You Ready? 1:34
- 15 VII. Huojuva keula (The swaying prow) 1:03
- 16 VIII. Le Bain (Swimming) 1:36
- 17 IX. Me emme kuole koskaan (We shall never die) 2:16
- 18 X. Så var det (So it was) 1:27
- 19 XI. Song of Myself 7:15
CD 2
Einojuhani Rautavaara
- Neljä laulua Aleksis Kiven runoihin (Four Songs to Poems by Aleksis Kivi) (1998/2005)
- 1 I. Ikävyys (Melancholy) 4:01
- 2 II. Olven kunnia (The glory of beer) 1:30
- 3 III. Oravan laulu (The squirrel) 3:33
- 4 IV. Sydämeni laulu (Song of my heart) 3:33
- 5 Legenda (Legend) (1985) 3:06
- 6 Lehdet lehtiä (Leaves are Leaves) (1985) 4:30
- Neljä serenadia (Four Serenades) (1978)
- 7 I. Serenade für meine Frau (Serenade to my wife) 1:38
- 8 II. La mort des pauvres (Serenade to death) 2:06
- 9 III. Serenadien serenadi (Serenade of Serenades) 1:26
- 10 IV. Serenadi oluelle (Serenade to beer) 2:16
- 11 Hammarskjöld-fragment (Hammarskjöld Fragment) (1975) 5:51
- 12 Isontalon Antti ja Rannanjärvi (Antti Isotalo and Rannanjärvi) (1973) 3:48
- 13 Hallin Janne (Janne of Halli) (1973) 1:51
- 14 Kettu ja sairas kukko (The Fox and the Sick Cockerel) (1975) 1:53
- Neljä romanssia oopperasta Rasputin (Four Romances from the Opera Rasputin) (2003/2006)
- 15 I. Lävitse kimmeltävän yön (Through the glimmering night) 2:21
- 16 II. Kaukana on minun maani (Far away lies my homeland) 3:07
- 17 III. Troikka kiitää (The troika speeds) 1:46
- 18 IV. Kuu kelmeä vain virtaan kuvastuu (Moonlight is pale upon the river) 2:20
About this recording
This double CD comprises Einojuhani Rautavaara's complete music for male choir - one of the most popular genres in the Finnish cult composer's artistic output. The two featured ensembles are YL Male Voice Choir (Helsinki University Choir), one of the world's most prominent male voice choirs and the prominent commissioner and dedicatee of most of Rautavaara's (and also Jean Sibelius's) works for male choir, and the Talla Vocal Ensemble, a smaller group of 10 singers originally founded within the YL Choir.
Both ensembles are performing separately on this disc:
YL Male Voice Choir, Matti Hyökki: CD 1 (1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 12, 15-17, 19), CD 2 (1-4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14-18);
Talla Vocal Ensemble, Pasi Hyökki: CD 1 (3, 4, 7, 9-11, 13, 14, 18), CD 2 (5, 7, 9, 11, 13).
Tenor Tuomas Katajala is featured as soloist with several songs: CD 1 (19), CD 2 (6, 12).
This release marks the culmination of the 80th birthday celebrations for Ondine's best-selling composer on October 9th. Ondine has had a long and fruitful association with Rautavaara since the late 1980s, having recorded the premières of many of his works and garnering many awards along the way, including a Grammy nomination for his Angel of Light (Symphony No. 7; ODE 869-2).
Features
2 CDs; booklet with liner notes in English and Finnish and the sung lyrics in the original language and in English
Press
Especially striking, its tenor line soaring over a quasi-orchestral vocal fabric, is the literary Leaves are Leaves; but finer stilll are the Four Alexis Kivi Songs (...) the main solo 'Melancholy' movingly underpinned by YL's awesomely dark, firm basses.
Michael Scott Rohan, BBC Music Magazine, March 2009, Performance / Sound
It would be a mistake to bypass it, for this is not just choral music, but choral music by a Finnish composer, and the male choir is one of the most popular examples of the genre - the Finns love it. (...) Both (choirs) are, in a word, phenomenal, and well worth the effort and purchase.
Steven Ritter, Audiophile Audition, January 1, 2009
This comprehensive, magnificently sung collection has the field to itself. (...) The greater textural palette attained through using two differently sized choirs is more akin to early music.
Guy Rickards, Gramophone, January 2009, Editor's Choice
Einojuhani Rautavaara has a sensitive ear for the specific sound of a male choir. (...) The YL Male Voice Choir under Matti Hyökki phrases the music and pronounces the texts with great energy. The pure sound produced by the Talla Vocal Ensemble will caress your ears.
Jukka Isopuro, Helsingin Sanomat, October 9, 2008
Clearly, these singers and their conductors (...) have Rautavaara's music deeply entrenched in their souls. (...) splendid tribute to Finland's most significant musical voice.
Marc Rochester, International Record Review, October 2008
The artists
YL Male Voice Choir
The YL Male Voice Choir is a pioneer in Finnish choral music. Founded at the University of Helsinki in 1883, it is the oldest Finnish-language choir in Finland. Its cultural merits, extensive history of concerts, several tours abroad and numerous critically acclaimed recordings have established it as one of the world’s most prominent male voice choirs.
Matti Hyökki
An unparalleled figure in Finnish choral music, Matti Hyökki led the YL Male Voice Choir as conductor from 1980 to 2010, with many international accolades along their way. He was also chorus master of the Finnish National Opera from 1992 to 1995. Having earlier completed diplomas as church organist and music teacher at the Sibelius Academy, he became in 2003 the first graduate in Finland of a doctoral degree programme in choir conducting, with YL as his instrument. Since 2007, Matti Hyökki has been Professor of Choir Conducting at the Sibelius Academy. He is a regular jury member at international choir competitions and has conducted numerous international choir workshops.
Talla Vocal Ensemble
Founded in Helsinki in 1991, Talla Vocal Ensemble consists of eleven male singers with a combined range of four octaves, including the rare male soprano voice and a deep Slavonic bass. Their repertoire extends from Renaissance polychoral works to contemporary music and folk music of the Baltic Sea region. Talla has won several international competitions and is featured on numerous acclaimed recordings, including world premiere recordings made for the Finnish Broadcasting Company. The group is a regular guest at international choir festivals.
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