Drowning Sorrows
Donald Macleod focuses on Sibelius's musical triumphs and personal troubles before the outbreak of the First World War as his drinking spiralled out of control.
Donald Macleod delves into the life and work of the man who is almost universally recognised as Finland's greatest ever composer - Jean Sibelius. Sibelius's music went a long way towards establishing a sense of national musical identity in Finland - a tradition that has flourished there ever since. Sibelius felt a strong connection with his homeland and the nature that flourished there, and the nationalist flavour of his works was highly appealing to a Finnish audience at a time when Finland was fighting for independence from Russia. In today's programme, Donald focuses on the political turmoil in Finland before the outbreak of the First World War, which included an arrest for Sibelius. He also charts a few of the composer's musical triumphs, including his Second Symphony which was adopted as an anthem of national freedom, and increasing personal troubles as his drinking spiralled out of control.
Finlandia Hymn
Dominate Choir
Seppo Murto (director)
Symphony No 2 (Finale)
贬补濒濒茅
Mark Elder (conductor)
In Memoriam
Turku Philharmonic Orchestra
Leif Segerstam (conductor)
Pohjola's Daughter
Lahti Symphony Orchestra
Osmo Vanska (conductor)
The Maiden with the Roses (Swanwhite Suite)
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra
Neeme Jarvi (conductor)
Producer: Sam Phillips.
Last on
Music Played
-
![]()
Jean Sibelius
Finlandia Hymn
Choir: Dominante. Conductor: Seppo Murto.- BIS: CD193032.
- BIS.
- 31.
-
![]()
Jean Sibelius
Symphony No. 2: Finale
Orchestra: 贬补濒濒茅. Conductor: Sir Mark Elder.- HALLE CDHLL7516.
- HALLE.
- 4.
-
![]()
Jean Sibelius
In Memoriam
Orchestra: Turku Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Leif Segerstam.- NAXOS : 8.-573340.
- Naxos.
- 20.
-
![]()
Jean Sibelius
Pohjola's Daughter
Orchestra: Lahti Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Osmo V盲nsk盲.- BIS : CD--1225.
- BIS.
- 4.
-
![]()
Jean Sibelius
The Maiden with the Roses (Swanwhite Suite)
Orchestra: Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Neeme J盲rvi.- BIS : CD-359.
- BIS.
- 3.
Broadcasts
- Wed 14 Feb 2018 12:00大象传媒 Radio 3
- Wed 18 Mar 2020 12:00大象传媒 Radio 3
Vaughan Williams Today
Programmes, concerts and features celebrating Vaughan Williams's 150th anniversary.
Beethoven Unleashed 鈥� the box set
The complete set of Radio 3 Beethoven Unleashed podcasts, with Donald Macleod.
What was really wrong with Beethoven?
Georgia Mann and neurosurgeon Henry Marsh examine the composer's numerous health problems
Composers A to Z
Visit the extensive audio archive of Radio 3 programmes about Composers and their works.
Who knew? Five eye-opening stories from Composer of the Week
The production team reflects on 5 of Donald Macleod鈥檚 best stories from the last 20 years
Five reasons why we love Parry's Jerusalem
What is the strange power of Jerusalem which makes strong men weep?
A man out of time 鈥� why Parry's music and ideas were at odds with his image...
The composer of Jerusalem was very far from the conservative figure his image suggests.
Composer Help Page
Find resources and contacts for composers from within the classical music industry.