'Nowadays I like his Sixth best, it is probably natural, as one grows older. As Sibelius so beautifully said about the 6th: 'As the shadows grow longer'.

Joonas Kokkonen, Finnish composer [1995]
kullervopete.

Not so much a quote, but an idea about the 6th nonetheless:

From Sibelius' diary, March 2, 1912, discussing plans for future compositions:

"A symphony V. A symphony VI: 'Luonnotar!' We shall see whether these plans hold out."

This journal entry was made about a year before beginning work on the eventual tone poem.

'Rage and passion [...] are utterly essential in it, but it is supported by undercurrents deep under the surface of the music'.

Jean Sibelius to Simon Parmet.
kullervopete.

'A dazzling display of a technique so personal and so assured that its very achievements [are] hidden in its mastery and in its entire synthesis with its subject matter'.

Ralph Wood, writer on music.--kullervopete.

That sentance is quite involved... it actually makes my head spin a little. Would anyone care to try to analyze what Mr. Wood means by:

... its very achievements are hidden in its mastery ... ?

Art conceals art, I guess... it's a good quote, but the sort of thing a translator would loathe because the words, for all their poetry and elegance, actually don't sit very comfortably together!

For the record and for a few members of my orchestra who "owl" here at the forum:

'Okouzlující příklad techniky, která je tak osobní a sebejistá, že její úspěchy jsou shované uvnitř jejího mistrovství a syntéze s materiálem, ze které je sestavená.'

It's a bit wordy and circular in Czech as well, but not less poetic.

_______________________________

To "owl" is official Forum Admin jargon for people who watch forums but don't contribute.

'Many people have considered it the most masterly achievement of Sibelius's Symphonic art. The Fourth Symphony is in a way tied to the expressionistic aspirations of its era. The Sixth Symphony is timeless'.

Erkki Salmenhaara, musicologist 1984.--kullervopete.

Number 6 is autobiographical. An aging man feels his own incapacity. The ideals are there, but he cannot reach them.

Osmo Vanska [1998]--kullervopete.

'The 6th symphony always makes me remember the scent of the first snow'.

Jean Sibelius to Jussi Jalas, 31st December 1943.--kullervopete.

David Cherniavsky

'the final stage in [Sibelius's] quest for, or in his spontaneous attainment of, complete unity'.
--kullervopete.

Kurkikohtaus wrote:

For the record and for a few members of my orchestra who "owl" here at the forum: 'Okouzlující příklad techniky, která je tak osobní a sebejistá, že její úspěchy jsou shované uvnitř jejího mistrovství a syntéze s materiálem, ze které je sestavená.' It's a bit wordy and circular in Czech as well, but not less poetic.

Kurkikohtaus, the Google translator spews out this: "Charming example of technology that is so personal and sebejistá that its successes are shované within its championship and synthesis of material from which it is set up."

I believe I get the gist, but could I please receive some help with "sebejistá" and "shované"? Apparently they're not in the Google lexicon. I assume you were meaning to translate Kullervopete's posted quote from Ralph Wood for the benefit of Czech "owlers".

Kurkikohtaus wrote:

To "owl" is official Forum Admin jargon for people who watch forums but don't contribute.

In other words, to "lurk", from official forum user jargon.

Yes, exactly, this was an attempt to translate the Wood's quote.

Sebejistá = self-assured

Shované = hidden

"Rage and passion are utterly essential in it, but it is supported by undercurrents deep under the surface of the music."

I have always found this quote to be fascinating. What do you guys think when Sibbe mentions "passion and rage" in this symphony? This is a very subdued work to my ears...I think it lacks the traditional passion of, say, the 1st and 2nd Symphonies and the rage of Kullervo. I think of the 6th as mostly full of classical restraint.

What say you guys?

Expressions of passion and rage are culture-specific things. All "passion" does not have to mimic Venezuelan daytime TV dramas and all "rage" needn't be something like the battle cry "THIS... IS SPARTA!"

More specifically, think of some of the different types of passion in music:

• Mozart's Masses
  
• Schubert's Songs
  
• Puccini's Duets

Think of the different forms of rage in music:

• Beethoven's 5th
  
• Verdi's Requiem
  
• Dvořák's 9th (end of the 1st mvmt... Czech Rage when there's no more beer)...

So although I would never think of the words "Passion" and "Rage" to describe Sibelius' 6th, perhaps for Sibelius, in his unique Finnish way, THIS... IS PASSION AND RAGE. In a quiet and inner sense.

I can see of course why Tapkaara see's the 6th as 'a very subdued work'. The first two symphonies were created when Sibelius was a relatively young man, and still in his national romantic phase. As Osmo Vanska say's in another quote about the 6th, 'an aging man feels his own incapacity'.
But within the serenity and purity of the 6th, tensions can be felt under the surface. In the exuberant third movement, listen to the brass chords bringing things to a halt with passionate rage!
The finale [one of Sibs greatest] opens radiantly enough, but a mighty storm breaks out that threatens to bring everything come crashing down. To my mind the threat is as great as in Nielsen's fifth symphony, were in that great work, the drummer trys to disrupt the flow of the music.
The way that Sibelius regains stability in his 6th symphony and finally delivers a hymn of indescribable beauty is miraculous.--kullervopete.

Kurkikohtaus wrote:

That sentance is quite involved... it actually makes my head spin a little. Would anyone care to try to analyze what Mr. Wood means by: ... its very achievements are hidden in its mastery ... ?

I think it brings to mind how under-appreciated this symphony is. It is so masterfully composed that people don't realize just how great and mature it really is. It doesn't have any really loud boisterous things in it, no absurd fanfares. It's all pure music, the "cold spring water."

On a more personal and biased note, I think it's this piece truly marks Sibelius' departure from other influences. The third was the fore-runner, but Sibelius never quite followed through with it; the fourth was another one. The fifth seems to me very "mainstream" in its way, Sibelian yet not in the way of the third and post-Sixth. Yes, I think the Sixth is the beginning of the real Sibelius.

Oh, by the way, that could be my quote about the Sixth. Therefore I'm still keeping with the topic.

'The Sixth Symphony [1923] is to me more like Italian Plainsong than the murmur of a cold stream. It is definately a good Symphony for orchestral players, the balance almost automatically sorts itself out'.

Conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste, 2002.--kullervopete.

'The most Finnish of Sibelius's Symphonies'.

Simon Parmet, conductor.

Does anyone agree with the above quote on No.6 ?
As I see it, from the third symphony on, Sibelius moved steadily towards a more universal style which transcended purely National boundaries. In what sense might the 6th be the most 'Finnish' of the seven?--kp

In terms of the shaping of the themes and motifs, and also in terms of various stress patterns, I can understand why Parmet made these comments. As he was a pupil of Erik Furuhjelm, who knows where this idea could have originated? And the Sixth has a purity of sound (cold water, posts passim) that maybe appealed to the nature-loving side of Parmet's character (about which I admit that I don't know much but, as he was a Finn, it would have been pretty much de rigueur for him to love nature).

Whether one can totally agree with his remarks is another matter…