Erkki Salmenhaara

Erkki Olavi Salmenhaara (born March 12, 1941 in Helsinki ; † March 19, 2002 ibid) was a Finnish composer and musicologist.

Salmenhaara studied at the Helsinki Conservatory with Joonas Kokkonen and in 1963 for a few months in Vienna with György Ligeti . This was followed by a degree in musicology , aesthetics and philosophy, which he completed with a dissertation on Ligeti's music in 1970, at the University of Helsinki, where he worked as a teacher since 1966 and as an assistant professor since 1975.

From 1963 to 1973 he was a music critic at Helsingin Sanomat . From 1969 he was Vice-President of the Finnish Society of Musicology, from 1974 to 1976 President of the Finnish Composers Association and from 1974 to 1978 President of the Finnish Symphony Orchestra Association.

Salmenhaara wrote the biographies of Jean Sibelius and Leevi Madetoja , commentaries on the works of Ligeti and Johannes Brahms and on Sibelius's tone poem Tapiola , writings on the music of the 20th century, contributions to the dictionary of Finnish music history and a textbook on music theory.

He composed, among other things, five symphonies and one symphonic poem, four elegies for chamber orchestra, chamber music works, piano pieces, cantatas, choral works, songs and pieces for electronic instruments.

Works

• Seventeen Little Pieces for Piano, 1957–60
• Suoni successivi for piano four hands, 1962
• 1st symphony , 1962
• 2nd symphony , 1963
• 3rd Symphony , 1963-64
• Le Bateau ivre , tone poem for orchestra, based on a poem by Arthur Rimbaud , 1965–66
• Suomi , clay poem, 1966
• La fille en mini-jupe for orchestra, 1967
• Requiem profanum , 1968-69
• Portugalin nainen (The Portuguese Woman), opera based on a story by Robert Musil , 1970–72
• 4th Symphony - Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita , 1972
• Horn Concerto , 1973
• Missa profana , 1977
• Introduction and chorale , organ concert, premiered by Karl-Erik Welin , 1978
• Concerto for two violins and orchestra , 1980
• Piano Sonata , 1981
• Cello Concerto , 1983–87
• Lintukoto , 5th Symphony after Aleksis Kivi , 1989

Discography

(Selection)

• Suomi-Finland , La Fille en mini-jupe , Adagietto , Le bateau ivre . Tampere Philharmonic, Eri Klas. Ondine ODE-1031-2.
• Chamber music with piano. Jouni Somero, piano - Raymond Cox, violin - Laura Bucht, violincello. FC Records FCRCD-9727.
• Piano music (complete recording). Jouni Somero, piano. (2CD) FC Records FCRCD-9707.
• Symphonies No. 2, 3 & 4 . Helsinki Radio Symphony Orchestra, Paavo Berglund, Petri Komulainen, Ulf Söderblom. Finlandia Classics FINCLA27.
• Symphony No. 5: Lintukoto . Helsinki Radio Symphony Orchestra, Akateeminen laulu, Riikka Hakola (soprano), Jorma Hynninen (baritone), Jorma Panula. UHCD350.

Books

• Sointuanalyysi , 1968.
• The musical material and its treatment in the works Apparitions, Atmosphères , Aventures and Requiem by György Ligeti (dissertation), 1970.
• Tapiola: Symphonines runo Tapiola Sibeliuksen myöhäistyylin edustajana , 1970.
• Soinnutus: Harmonines ajattelu tonaalisessa musiikissa , 1970.
• Tutkielmia Brahmsin sinfonioista , 1979.
• Jean Sibelius , 1984.
• Leevi Madetoja , 1987.
• Löytöretkiä musiikkiin: Valittuja kirjoituksia 1960–1990 , 1991.
• Suomen musiikin historia 1–3, 1995–1996.

swell

• Guy Rickards: Erkki Salmenhaara , The Guardian, May 23, 2002
• ERKKI SALMENHAARA IN MEMORIAM
• Erkki Salmenhaara Helsingin Sanomat

Left

• Erkki Salmenhaara. 375 humanists. University of Helsinki Faculty of Humanities. July 29, 2015.