''Cantus Arcticus'', Op. 61, is a 1972

orchestral An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, ce ...

composition by the Finnish

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 ...

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 ...

. It is one of his best-known works. Subtitled ''Concerto for Birds and Orchestra'', it incorporates tape recordings of

birdsong Bird vocalization includes both bird calls and bird songs. In non-technical use, bird songs are the bird sounds that are melodious to the human ear. In ornithology and birding, songs (relatively complex vocalizations) are distinguished by func ...

recorded near the

Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...

, and on the bogs of

Liminka Liminka ( sv, Limingo) is a municipality in the Northern Ostrobothnia region in Finland. Liminka is located about south of Oulu. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . The n ...

, in northern Finland. The work is in three movements: ''The bog'' opens with a

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

duet, after which the other

woodwind Woodwind instruments are a family of musical instruments within the greater category of wind instruments. Common examples include flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon, and saxophone. There are two main types of woodwind instruments: flutes and reed ...

s join in, followed by the birds. The second movement, ''Melancholy'', features a slowed-down recording of the song of the

shore lark The horned lark or shore lark (''Eremophila alpestris'') is a species of lark in the family Alaudidae found across the northern hemisphere. It is known as "horned lark" in North America and "shore lark" in Europe. Taxonomy, evolution and systema ...

. The final movement, ''Swans migrating'', takes the form of a long

crescendo In music, the dynamics of a piece is the variation in loudness between notes or phrases. Dynamics are indicated by specific musical notation, often in some detail. However, dynamics markings still require interpretation by the performer dependi ...

for orchestra, with the sounds of

whooper swan The whooper swan ( /ˈhuːpə(ɹ) swɒn/) (''Cygnus cygnus''), also known as the common swan, pronounced ''hooper swan'', is a large northern hemisphere swan. It is the Eurasian counterpart of the North American trumpeter swan, and the type specie ...

s. At the end both birdsong and orchestra fade, as if into the distance.CD liner notes, ''Cantus Arcticus'', Ondine ODE 1041-2 ''Cantus Arcticus'' was commissioned by the

University of Oulu The University of Oulu ( fi, Oulun yliopisto) is one of the largest universities in Finland, located in the city of Oulu. It was founded on July 8, 1958. The university has around 13,000 students and 2,900 staff. 21 International Master's P ...

for its first doctoral degree ceremony and premièred on 18 October 1972 with Stephen Portman conducting.

References

External links

Fennica Gehrman home page (Publisher)
{{italic title Compositions by Einojuhani Rautavaara 1972 compositions Concertos University of Oulu Culture of the Arctic Commissioned music