Music from Finland; 8

This is Music from Finland. The classical contemporary and folk music from the Sibelius Festival and 50th Anniversary of Finnish Independence Celebration in a series reviewing some of the current musical activity in Finland. This second series of programs of music from Finland is based on recordings supplied by the Finnish broadcasting company, or production by the University of Michigan. Today we will hear a recording of the Finnish National Coral Festival conducted in Tampere. The program was produced by Timo Wurtila of the Finnish broadcasting company and is narrated by Donald Fields.

The program opens with the playing of a portion of the tone poem Finlandia by Jan Sibelius. Is it possible to put all independence into its own language, as the desire to impose independence in the national country does not mean that activities is not made in memory in a way. In 1869, two Finnish students visited Estonia, heard a song festival and returned across the Gulf of Finland full of enthusiasm for this cultural way of getting things off

one's chest. Interesting choral festivals grew in revolutionary fashion after Finland had held its first one in 1884. It was an expression of national feeling of the type produced by individual writers and composers, but this time in a corporate democratic manner. The Tampere boys choir singing C-shanters arranged by Vainahannikainen. Choral singing formed the basic theme of this year's festival, which the Finns call Lalo Juhlatt, strictly translated

as song festival, but folk dancing had its place as well. In this field, Finland is a meeting place for East and West. Let's listen to a wedding dance from Partene Karelia and a dance from Chakkar in Swedish-speaking Oland. Let's listen to a傳統 artist, Pappacci and Pappas. .

. . . The dancing involved hundreds, all dressed in national costumes. The women with bonnets or ribbons round their hair and white blouses, tight bodices, striped or hoop skirts and white stockings. The men in striped jackets and black trousers, fairly reminiscent of folk costumes in other northern countries. The colours and designs vary according to the province or even district the person is from. . The national character of the festival can be seen in the fact that most of the choral music

was a finished composition. Here's a men's choir singing Selim Pongren's Vyd Milan at the Chaco Pit. The choir has hundreds of singers. And the place they're singing in is the athletic stadium in Tampere. . . Tampere, the city of 130,000, two and a half hours by train from Helsinki, was the scene of this year's musical High Jinks.

Tampere is the Manchester of Finland, a textile town combining heavy industry with the sculpture of Vina Artonin, the ultra-modern university which grew out of the high school of social science, and the Punicchi Open Air Theatre, which has the world's first revolving auditorium and where local writer Vina Linna's The Unknown Soldier is performed. Our city of Tampere has put stadiums, seats and other facilities at the disposal of the festival authorities free of charge. Raincoats have been reserved for spectators in case of bad weather. . Tampere is the centre of the city of Tampere.

Tampere is the centre of the city of Tampere. The highlight of the 1967 festival was Aino Johanirata Varas Independence Cantata. This is a work for massed choirs and orchestras whose words are based on the documentary evidence of Finland's history and the contradictory attitudes of two poets, the romantic traditionalist V.A. Korskennyami and the modern expressionist Pavor Havikov. So deep are the contradictions, in fact, that according to Mr. Ratovara, two choirs refused to sing the work for political reasons.

Mr. Ratovara, can you tell us something about the ideas you have used in this cantata? I wanted to find something central, something important of our short history of our independence. I choose the text from various sources, from two poets from Havikov, who is a modern poet and Korskennyami, who is an old one. And then I also mixed some historical words like words from the correspondence between Nikolai Babrikov, who was the governor of Finland before the independence.

And between him and Tsar Nikolai II of Russia was our Tsar, our king then. And that correspondence was very interesting. And then also from later periods of our history, like from speeches of precedence, restority and mannerism. And mixing all these very different elements, I hope to make a picture of the whole period of these 50 years, which has gone. And I hope that the music would unite all these very different texts.

Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara.

Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara.

Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara.

Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Another composer represented in the festival was Bengt Johansson, whose cantata from Fluda Teder, from Bygone Times, to the words of 19th Century National poet J. L. Runa Berry, was performed for the first time in the stadium. J. L. Runa Berry, was performed for the first time in the stadium.

Perhaps the liveliest music in the whole festival was that by the amazingly energetic, Leif Segerstam composer and conductor, his work equilibrium introduced jazz themes through a large young orchestra, that of the climetti music college. Thank you very much.

Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. Thank you very much, Mr. Ratovara. This choral festival was at its most colourful on the Sunday afternoon, when the 20,000 participants, singers, players, dancers marched

in procession along Tampere's Main Street, Hemenkartou. So great was the number of marches that it took three quarters of an hour for the parade to pass our vantage point. It was above all a national parade. Unfortunately for everybody concerned, the black clouds and chill winds of the first day were dispelled for the parade by a smiling sun. The great parade was an essentially finished occasion, but non-finished choirs did have their part to play in the festival too. Estonia centre were acquired, conducted by Gustav Ernestax, and here is their performance of Sibelius' Min Rastas Rata, heavy toil. Whatever the thrash gets by toil is taken by the hazelgrass.

The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival.

The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival.

The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival.

Yes, the Americans still sing in Finnish despite the fact that many of them are third or fourth generation inhabitants of the United States. They, like all those gathered in Tampere for this choral festival, doubtless felt the significance of this occasion in the 50th year of Little Finland's independence. In what more appropriate way could we end than by playing Frederick Passius's Suomen Laolo, the song of Finland, as performed in the Finnish choral festival 1967. Here are the masked voices of 20,000 singers. The parade was at its most colourful festival.

The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The Finnish National Choral Festival, recording of this outstanding event in Finland,

recording of this outstanding event in Finnish musical life, made in Tampere, produced by Timo Wotila of the Finnish Broadcasting Company and narrated by Donald Fields. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival.

The parade was at its most colourful festival. The music from Finland is based on recording supplied by the Finnish Broadcasting Company for production by the University of Michigan. The parade was at its most colourful festival. The parade was at its most colourful festival.