SIBELIUS

In the Stream of Life (orch. Rautavaara); Pohjola’s Daughter; The Oceanides; Romance in C; Songs – selection

Gerald Finley (bass-baritone); Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra/edward Gardner

Chandos CHSA 5178 (hybrid CD/SACD) 78:40 mins

Sibelius springboarded the late Einojuhani Rautavaara’s career by recommending him for a scholarship to New York’s Juilliard School. His reverence for the older composer shows in this song cycle In the

Stream of Life he orchestrated for his friend Gerald Finley. Singers such as Soile Isokoski and Jorma Hynninen have shown how effective such orchestrations can be, whether Sibelius’s own or those by Jussi Jalas and others. Rautavaara’s, though, are different, reflections on Sibelius’s own style rather than mere pastiche. Choosing mostly less famous songs (except ‘Svarta Rosor’ – Black Roses), he weaves around Sibelius’s sparely lyrical lines distinctly Rautavaaran