Masterpiece Presents Sibelius' Seventh Symphony

Esteemed guest conductor Eri Klas will lead Seattle Symphony on a musical journey to the countries of Russia, Estonia and Finland. Klas will conduct the orchestra in a program featuring Sibelius'The Swan of Tuonela from Legends and his haunting Symphony No. 7. The program will also include Rimsky-Korsakov's Russian Easter Overture and Arvo Pärt's Tabula Rasa.

Seattle Symphony violinists Maria Larionoff and Elisa Barston will be featured in Pärt's Tabula Rasa. Performances will take place on Thursday, Feb. 15, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, February 17, at 8 p.m.

Eri Klas, a great champion of contemporary music, has premiered and conducted Alfred Schnittke's Peer Gynt and First Cello Concerto, as well as works by Estonian composers Pärt, Tamberg, Tormis, Tubin and Eller. Currently the Chief Conductor of the Novaya Opera Theatre in Moscow, Klas also holds positions as Artistic Director of the Tallinn Philharmonic in Estonia, Principal Guest Conductor of the Finnish National Opera and Holland Kammerphilharmonie, and Conductor Laureate of the Tampere Philharmonic and Estonian National Opera. In honor of his artistic achievements, Klas has received the Order of "Nordstjernen" from His Majesty King Carl Gustav of Sweden, the Order of Finnish Lion and an honorary doctorate form the Estonian Music Academy.

Klas studied at the Tallinn Conservatory and in St. Petersburg with Nikolai Rabinovich and has gone on to appear with and direct some of the world's best orchestras. From 1969 to 1981, he was Assistant Conductor at the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow. In 1975, he was appointed Music Director of the Estonian National Opera, where he became conductor laureate 20 years later. More recently, Klas was Music Director of the Royal Opera in Stockholm (1985 to 1990) and went on to become Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1996 to 2003.

Rimsky-Korsakov's Russian Easter Overture which will open the program, is a brilliant example of masterly orchestration and instrumental color. Russian themes abound in a piece that highlights tunes from the "Obikhod," a collection of Greek Orthodox canticles. Moving next to Estonia, Arvo Pärt's Tabula Rasa showcases the composer's celebration human spirituality inspired by the timeless beauties of plainchant from the pre-Renaissance period. Written in 1978, the title may reference the composer's synchronous reconnection with his own spirituality. The final note of the piece is simply "implied," as if to say that spiritual transformation is found within the silence.

The music of Jean Sibelius dominates the second half of the program. The Swan of Tuonela is a tone poem based on the adventures of Lemminkainen, the protagonist from the Finnish national epic, the Kalevala. The piece is a dreamlike portrait of the world of death in
Kalevala and few works convey such a sense of gloomy stillness. This is followed by Sibelius' haunting Symphony No. 7, the composer's final symphony. Though written as one extended movement, many have analyzed it as a three-movement or even five-movement work sewn together. Whether in one, three or five sections, the work is a masterpiece, blending the melancholy and anxiety that has become the composer's staple.

Single tickets from $15 to $89 can be purchased by calling the Seattle Symphony Ticket Office at (206) 215-4747 or toll-free at (866) 833-4747, faxing the Symphony at (206) 215-4748, ordering online at www.seattlesymphony.org with the "Select-Your-Own-Seat" option, or visiting the Seattle Symphony Ticket Office in Benaroya Hall at Third Avenue & Union Street, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, 1 to 6 p.m. -- www.seattlesymphony.org