Le Nord : revue internationale des Pays de Nord - 01.06.1941, Side 213

JEAN SIBELIUS
207
of modern art at his command to make a picture as glowingly
vivid as possible,” as a contemporaneous critic said of him. The
significance of the absolutely new conception of subject for the
composer himself was the creation of a new, personal style, on
the basis of which the more and more individualized quality of
his later composition is built. In creating his personal style the
composer did not choose melodies from Finnish folk music as
themes and adapt them to his composition; his strongly original
imagination could not be satisfied with any form of arranging
ready material, but he interpreted the mental images inspired by
old Finnish poetry in melodies, the simple monumentality and
strength of which seem to well forth directly from the original
fountain. A most fruitful period of creation followed. From that
time on the orchestra is the instrument for which he composes
the most momentous part of his production, which consists of a
great number of works — also numerous compositions outside
the sphere of Kalevala — but in all of them one recognizes the
form of expression characteristic of the composer, the new style,
which developed into individualism, into a “Sibelius-stamp” on
everything that he does. The fabulous, elemental world of ancient
subject-material has an especial attraction for him, but his
imagination also travels with pleasure from the ancient, mythical
times to historical surroundings, where he finds a new task, a
patriotic one in the narrowest sense of the word. At a time when
the Finnish people were threatened by a rule of oppression “The
Song of the Athenians” and the world-famed “Finlandia” came
into being. One of the chief charms of his earlier as well as later
composition lies in his original use of the colour-scale which the
orchestra offered. But the impression made by Sibelius’ music has
never been essentially due to colour-effects but above all to pure
musical values, of original, simple and vigorous melodic line, of
clearly outlined rhythm, and of harmony which is fresh, ex-
pressive, but sparing with the chromatic element. These gifts of
his are clearly brought forth also in his lyrical production, a very
great part of which was born at this time.
The fact that in his later creative period his composition
gravitates to symphonic music does not, viewed more deeply,
denote a change of course, for all he produced during his period
of study was absolute music. His first creative period had given
birth to an abundance of compositions, the dominant character
of which is decided by their national spirit and their descriptive