Uploaded May 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Leif Segerstam.
I - Tempo molto moderato, quasi adagio - Adagio - Tempo I - Adagio - Tempo I: 0:00
II - Allegro molto vivace - Tranquillo - A tempo: 11:16
III - Tempo largo: 16:12
IV - Allegro: 27:39
Sibelius' Symphony No.4 was composed between December 1909 and April 1911, being inspired by his travels through Karelia. It was premiered in Helsinki on April 3 of 1911, performed by the Philharmonia Society, conducted by the composer. The piece was poorly received at the time, as it left many confused and surprised for such an unexpected change in style. However, the piece slowly gained a place among the best and most unique pieces of the composer.
In the summer of 1908, Sibelius had a throat operation in order to extirpate a tumour. Despite it being successful, it triggered a period of anguish aggravated by his financial, drinking and smoking problems. Sibelius also wanted to experiment in search of new paths, distancing himself from the expansive romanticism of the first two symphonies, as well the more "neoclassical" third. The final push for inspirations was the travel to the mountains of Karelia, in which the desolate landscapes inspired him to compose such an enigmatic, dark and brooding piece.
The first movement is structured in a free sonata form. It begins with a dense and dissonant orchestra entrance that employs the interval of the tritone, serving as the basis of the whole work and described by Sibelius "as harsh as fate itself". A deeply melancholic main theme is then presented by the cello, developing in a canonical form and culminating in a climax enhanced by the brass. A more desolate second theme is then presented, hardly bringing contrast before beginning an aphoristic development section. It embraces some of Sibelius’s coldest and most strange music in its angularity and tonal uncertainty. An anticlimax leads us to the recapitulation of the second theme, before a mysterious coda ends the movement.
The second movement is a short scherzo in ternary form, showcasing Sibelius masterful economy of means. It opens with a folkish and bright main theme on oboe over string figures. However, the music soon darkens and becomes more dissonant after the innocently rhythmic play of the strings. The trio is a harrowing, macabre transformation of the scherzo theme and the movement ends not with a full-scale return to the scherzo material but with the merest hint of the dance-like opening.
The third movement is rhapsodic in form. It begins with several fragments introduced by woodwinds, which gradually assemble to form a meditative main theme of Nordic character. After several hints, it is fully exposed by strings. This movement perfectly showcases Sibelius very spare use of full orchestra, creating a largely chamber-type of piece. The music slowly unfolds and the material reassembles into a desolate chorale. A struggle for triumph begins, which fails and leaves us with the main theme before a deeply expressive and bitter anticlimax is finally reached. A completely defeated and desolate coda ends the movement without any ray of light.
The fourth movement is loosely structured as a sonata-rondo. It opens with a lively and rhythmic main theme on strings, featuring the glockenspiel (tubular bells in other recordings). This material is derived from the main the of the previous movement, which conflicts with a second theme in opposing keys. A development of these materials, combined with several small motives and fragments, lead us to a desperate, grindingly dissonant climax in which tonality teeters on the brink of total disintegration. The music then gradually disintegrates into nothingness in the slow coda, having failed to achieve any sort of triumph through the piece.
Picture: "Sick Mood at Sunset" (1892) by the Norwegian painter Edvard Munch.
Musical analysis partially written by myself. Sources: https://t.ly/___KE, tinyurl.com/2cmaondn and tinyurl.com/238t3qn3
To check the score: https://t.ly/IPBPp
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Leif Segerstam.
I - Tempo molto moderato, quasi adagio - Adagio - Tempo I - Adagio - Tempo I: 0:00
II - Allegro molto vivace - Tranquillo - A tempo: 11:16
III - Tempo largo: 16:12
IV - Allegro: 27:39
Sibelius' Symphony No.4 was composed between December 1909 and April 1911, being inspired by his travels through Karelia. It was premiered in Helsinki on April 3 of 1911, performed by the Philharmonia Society, conducted by the composer. The piece was poorly received at the time, as it left many confused and surprised for such an unexpected change in style. However, the piece slowly gained a place among the best and most unique pieces of the composer.
In the summer of 1908, Sibelius had a throat operation in order to extirpate a tumour. Despite it being successful, it triggered a period of anguish aggravated by his financial, drinking and smoking problems. Sibelius also wanted to experiment in search of new paths, distancing himself from the expansive romanticism of the first two symphonies, as well the more "neoclassical" third. The final push for inspirations was the travel to the mountains of Karelia, in which the desolate landscapes inspired him to compose such an enigmatic, dark and brooding piece.
The first movement is structured in a free sonata form. It begins with a dense and dissonant orchestra entrance that employs the interval of the tritone, serving as the basis of the whole work and described by Sibelius "as harsh as fate itself". A deeply melancholic main theme is then presented by the cello, developing in a canonical form and culminating in a climax enhanced by the brass. A more desolate second theme is then presented, hardly bringing contrast before beginning an aphoristic development section. It embraces some of Sibelius’s coldest and most strange music in its angularity and tonal uncertainty. An anticlimax leads us to the recapitulation of the second theme, before a mysterious coda ends the movement.
The second movement is a short scherzo in ternary form, showcasing Sibelius masterful economy of means. It opens with a folkish and bright main theme on oboe over string figures. However, the music soon darkens and becomes more dissonant after the innocently rhythmic play of the strings. The trio is a harrowing, macabre transformation of the scherzo theme and the movement ends not with a full-scale return to the scherzo material but with the merest hint of the dance-like opening.
The third movement is rhapsodic in form. It begins with several fragments introduced by woodwinds, which gradually assemble to form a meditative main theme of Nordic character. After several hints, it is fully exposed by strings. This movement perfectly showcases Sibelius very spare use of full orchestra, creating a largely chamber-type of piece. The music slowly unfolds and the material reassembles into a desolate chorale. A struggle for triumph begins, which fails and leaves us with the main theme before a deeply expressive and bitter anticlimax is finally reached. A completely defeated and desolate coda ends the movement without any ray of light.
The fourth movement is loosely structured as a sonata-rondo. It opens with a lively and rhythmic main theme on strings, featuring the glockenspiel (tubular bells in other recordings). This material is derived from the main the of the previous movement, which conflicts with a second theme in opposing keys. A development of these materials, combined with several small motives and fragments, lead us to a desperate, grindingly dissonant climax in which tonality teeters on the brink of total disintegration. The music then gradually disintegrates into nothingness in the slow coda, having failed to achieve any sort of triumph through the piece.
Picture: "Sick Mood at Sunset" (1892) by the Norwegian painter Edvard Munch.
Musical analysis partially written by myself. Sources: https://t.ly/___KE, tinyurl.com/2cmaondn and tinyurl.com/238t3qn3
To check the score: https://t.ly/IPBPp
