In October of 1980, Jean Sibelius travelled to Vienna in hopes of becoming Anton Bruckner’s student. However, his plan failed. Suffering from serious illness, the professor was about to retire. Still, the young composer was strongly shaped by Bruckner’s works, which were performed in Vienna.
In Vienna, Sibelius also devoted a lot of his attention to the Finnish national epic Kalevala, especially to the tragic story of Kullervo, which shows parallels to the myth of Oedipus. Kullervo unknowingly seduces his long-lost sister. In 1892, Sibelius’ monumental composition successfully premiered in Helsinki. In the beginning, the piece with its Finnish folklore melodies was celebrated as “the first real Finnish music”. Soon after, however, it received bad press.
DATE 27 July 2025, 11.00 a.m.
DURATION approx. 90 minutes (no intermission)
Sebastian Fagerlund Drifts for orchestra
Jean Sibelius Kullervo for Soprano and Baritone, men’s choir and orchestra, Op. 7
