Sibelius
Jean Sibelius (1865–1957) was a Finnish composer whose symphonies and tone poems became symbols of Finnish national identity.
In Depth
Sibelius is Finland's greatest composer, and his works are deeply intertwined with Finnish culture and the nation's struggle for independence from Russia. His tone poem Finlandia became an unofficial national anthem, and his seven symphonies trace a remarkable evolution from late-Romantic grandeur to stark, compressed modernism.
His Violin Concerto in D minor is one of the most technically demanding and emotionally powerful works for the instrument. After composing the tone poem Tapiola in 1926, Sibelius essentially fell silent for the last 30 years of his life, a mystery known as the "Silence of Järvenpää." He reportedly burned an eighth symphony and other manuscripts.
Sibelius stopped composing entirely after 1926 and lived another 30 years in near-total creative silence — one of music history's great unsolved mysteries.