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Leif Selim Segerstam ( , ; born 2 March 1944) is a
Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...
conductor,
composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...
,
violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...
ist,
violist ; german: Bratsche , alt=Viola shown from the front and the side , image=Bratsche.jpg , caption= , background=string , hornbostel_sachs=321.322-71 , hornbostel_sachs_desc=Composite chordophone sounded by a bow , range= , related= *Violin family ...
and
pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
, especially known for writing 350 symphonies as of August 2022, along with other works in his extensive oeuvre. Segerstam has conducted a variety of orchestras since 1963; mostly
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
n and
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
an. He is widely known through his recordings, which include the complete symphonies of Blomdahl,
Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...
,
Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...
, Nielsen, and
Sibelius Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...
, as well as many works by contemporary composers, such as the American composers John Corigliano and Christopher Rouse, the Finnish composer
Einojuhani Rautavaara Einojuhani Rautavaara (; 9 October 1928 – 27 July 2016) was a Finnish composer of classical music. Among the most notable Finnish composers since Jean Sibelius (1865–1957), Rautavaara wrote a List of compositions by Einojuhani Rautavaara, gre ...
, Swedish composer Allan Pettersson and the Russian composer
Alfred Schnittke Alfred Garrievich Schnittke (russian: Альфре́д Га́рриевич Шни́тке, link=no, Alfred Garriyevich Shnitke; 24 November 1934 – 3 August 1998) was a Russian composer of Jewish-German descent. Among the most performed and re ...
. His contributions to the Finnish music scene, and his vibrant personality, have contributed to his fame. He is well known for his high energy during performances, contributing to the musicality of the orchestra as a whole.


Biography

Leif Segerstam was born on 2 March 1944 in
Vaasa Vaasa (; sv, Vasa, , Sweden ), in the years 1855–1917 as Nikolainkaupunki ( sv, Nikolajstad; literally meaning "city of Nicholas),
, to Selim Segerstam and Viola Maria Kronqvist, into a musical family. Selim made several song books as a living. The Segerstams then moved to
Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
in 1947. In Leif's time in school, he played the
violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...
and the
viola The viola ( , also , ) is a string instrument that is bow (music), bowed, plucked, or played with varying techniques. Slightly larger than a violin, it has a lower and deeper sound. Since the 18th century, it has been the middle or alto voice of ...
in the Helsinki Youth Orchestra. Segerstam's debut concert as a violinist was in 1962, and his conducting debut was in 1963, with Rossini's ''
The Barber of Seville ''The Barber of Seville, or The Useless Precaution'' ( it, Il barbiere di Siviglia, ossia L'inutile precauzione ) is an ''opera buffa'' in two acts composed by Gioachino Rossini with an Italian libretto by Cesare Sterbini. The libretto was base ...
'', in
Tampere Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...
. Following the premiere, Segerstram was hired to conduct the
Finnish National Opera The Finnish National Opera and Ballet ( fi, Suomen Kansallisooppera ja -baletti; sv, Finlands Nationalopera och -balett) is a Finnish opera company and ballet company based in Helsinki. It is headquartered in the Opera House on the coast of the T ...
, and a year later, he conducted the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. He conducted modern works, such as Stravinsky's ''
Symphony of Psalms The ''Symphony of Psalms'' is a choral symphony in three movements composed by Igor Stravinsky in 1930 during his neoclassical period. The work was commissioned by Serge Koussevitzky to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Boston Symphony Orc ...
'' and Shostakovich's 1st symphony. Segerstam studied violin, piano and conducting at the
Sibelius Academy The Sibelius Academy ( fi, Taideyliopiston Sibelius-Akatemia, sv, Sibelius-Akademin vid Konstuniversitetet) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It al ...
in
Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
, and received a diploma in conducting in 1963. He studied conducting as well at the
Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...
in New York with Jean Morel, and received his postgraduate diploma in 1965. Segerstam became the conductor, and later on, artistic director of the Stockholm's Royal Opera in 1968 and began working with the German Opera in Berlin as well as the Finnish National Opera in the early 1970s. Segerstam served as chief conductor of the
Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra (in Finnish: ; in Swedish: ; literal English translation: Helsinki City Orchestra; commonly abbreviated as HPO) is an orchestra based in Helsinki, Finland. Founded in 1882 by Robert Kajanus, the Philharmonic ...
from 1995 to 2007, and now holds the title of Chief Conductor Emeritus with the orchestra. At the same time, he was chief conductor of the Stockholm's Royal Opera and the Savonlinna Opera Festival in Finland until 2000. He has held positions with numerous other orchestras, including the Danish National Radio Symphony and the Austrian Radio Symphony, and has guest-conducted many orchestras throughout the world including the Chicago Symphony, the
Los Angeles Philharmonic The Los Angeles Philharmonic, commonly referred to as the LA Phil, is an American orchestra based in Los Angeles, California. It has a regular season of concerts from October through June at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, and a summer season at th ...
, the
Toronto Symphony The Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) is a Canadian orchestra based in Toronto, Ontario. Founded in 1906, the TSO gave regular concerts at Massey Hall until 1982, and since then has performed at Roy Thomson Hall. The TSO also manages the Toronto ...
, the
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is a music organisation based in Liverpool, England, that manages a professional symphony orchestra, a concert venue, and extensive programmes of learning through music. Its orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmon ...
, and the Symphony Orchestra of the State of São Paulo. From autumn 1997 to spring 2013, he was Professor of Orchestra Conducting at the
Sibelius Academy The Sibelius Academy ( fi, Taideyliopiston Sibelius-Akatemia, sv, Sibelius-Akademin vid Konstuniversitetet) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It al ...
in Helsinki. His students include Susanna Mälkki, Mikk Murdvee,
Sasha Mäkilä Sasha Aleksi Mäkilä (born June 19, 1973) is a Finnish conductor. Biography Sasha Mäkilä, born in Kerava, Finland, first studied cello at the Helsinki Conservatory before starting his conducting studies with Leonid Korchmar at the Rimsky-K ...
and Markku Laakso.


Compositions

As a composer, he is especially known for his many symphonies, which number 344 as of April 2021. Most of his symphonies last for about 20 minutes, are formed of a single movement and are performed without a conductor. An example of this would be his 37th symphony which at its premiere featured Segerstam at the piano, leading the orchestra "in a relatively free form". This is partially inspired by Sibelius' 7th symphony. More than a hundred of Segerstam's symphonies have been performed. Many of his compositions are influenced by nature, and he is often praised for his contributions to Nordic Music. He developed a personal approach to aleatory composition through a style called "free pulsation" in which musical events interact flexibly in time, with his composition method persistent throughout his ''
œuvre Oeuvre(s) or Œuvre(s) may refer to: * A work of art; or, more commonly, the body of work of a creator Books * '' L'Œuvre'', a novel by Émile Zola * ''Œuvres'', a work by Emil Cioran * ''Œuvres'', a work by Auguste Brizeux * ''Oeuvres'', a wo ...
''. His fifth string quartet, the 'Lemming' (1970), ushered in his new chapter of post-expressionistic writing of the 1960s. This composition approach proved to be a quick way of writing large blocks of sound (the temporal order of events being left to the performer) and permitted an exceptionally prolific output. Instead of constituting individual works, his music is more like a musical stream of consciousness (under the headings of ''Thoughts'', ''Episode'' and ''Orchestral Diary Sheet''). It also means that there are numerous scorings of the same piece. This method was first used in his 5th String Quartet, the ''"Lemming Quartet"''. Among Segerstam's juvenilia (1960–1969) are four string quartets from 1962–1966, and the post-
impressionist Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement characterized by relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, open composition, emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities (often accentuating the effects of the passage ...
ballet Ballet () is a type of performance dance that originated during the Italian Renaissance in the fifteenth century and later developed into a concert dance form in France and Russia. It has since become a widespread and highly technical form of ...
''Pandora'' from 1967. The quartets are usually labeled as from his "Post-
Expressionist Expressionism is a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Northern Europe around the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it rad ...
" period. In 2015 Segerstam began work on an opera, ''
Völva In Germanic paganism, a seeress is a woman said to have the ability to foretell future events and perform sorcery. They are also referred to with many other names meaning "prophetess", "staff bearer", "wise woman" and "sorceress", and they are ...
n'', with a libretto by
Elisabeth Wärnfeldt Siv Elisabeth Margaretha Wärnfeldt (born 1956) is a Swedish author, opera and concert singer. Education and career Wärnfeldt took a bachelor's degree at Stockholm University in music, art and theatre science in 1979. She wrote her dissertatio ...
.


Personal life

He was married to the violinist (concertmaster of the Finnish RSO), with whom he had two children, Jan and Pia. Pia is a professional cellist; Jan is a businessman. After Segerstam's divorce from Hannele, he married the
Helsinki Philharmonic The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra (in Finnish: ; in Swedish: ; literal English translation: Helsinki City Orchestra; commonly abbreviated as HPO) is an orchestra based in Helsinki, Finland. Founded in 1882 by Robert Kajanus, the Philharmonic Orc ...
harpist Minnaleena Jankko in 2002, with whom he had three children: Violaelina (born 1997), Selimoskar (born 1998) and Iirisilona (born 1999). In 2009, it was announced that their marriage would end.


Works

* 344 symphonies () *30 string quartets *13 violin concertos *8 cello concertos *4 viola concertos *4 piano concertos


Awards

In 1962, he won the Maj Lind Piano Competition. In 1999, he was awarded the Nordic Council Music Prize for his work as a "tireless champion of Scandinavian Music". In spring 2003, he received Svenska Kulturfonden’s prize for his meritorious action in the field of music. In 2014, the President of Finland granted Segerstam the title of Professor and he was awarded the annual State Prize for Music in Finland. In 2005, he was awarded the highly esteemed
Sibelius Medal The Sibelius Medal is awarded to individuals and organizations for their outstanding achievements as performers or supporters of the music of Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. It has been awarded by the Sibelius Society of Finland since 1965. The m ...
.


Selected discography

This is a list of selected orchestral recordings conducted by Segerstam.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Segerstam, Leif 1944 births Living people Finnish classical composers 21st-century classical composers Finnish conductors (music) Swedish-speaking Finns Sibelius Academy alumni Academic staff of Sibelius Academy Finnish male classical composers Finnish violists 21st-century conductors (music) 21st-century male musicians People from Vaasa 21st-century Finnish composers 21st-century violists