There are two reasons for this article - first, the wonderful tone poem by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius, called Finlandia, Op. 26, written in 1899, and second, the amazing video made by Gulo Film Productions, written and directed by Oliver Goetzl. They both represent the finest from Finland, in their respective ways, but beautifully complementing each other in this (if I may call it so) feast for the senses.
The piece was composed for the Press Celebrations of 1899, a covert protest against increasing censorship from the Russian Empire. The premiere was on 2 July 1900 in Helsinki with the Helsinki Philharmonic Society conducted by Robert Kajanus. Finlandia had to be performed under alternative names at various musical concerts, to escape Russian censorship and possible persecutions. Among the names given, most famous are “Happy Feelings at the awakening of Finnish Spring,” and “A Scandinavian Choral March.”
Jean Sibelius is one of the trademarks of Finland. He was also a violinist and belonged to the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely recognized as his country's greatest composer and, through his music, is often credited with having helped Finland to develop a national identity during its struggle for independence.
The video was created in 2011. This film shows animal behaviour that has never been filmed before: Oliver Goetzl and Ivo Nörenberg got the first ever made shots of a wild lynx in the Finnish wilderness, they did high speed shots of Goldeneye chicks jumping out of their tree nest, they filmed exciting encounters of bears and wolves. The documentary was shot with more than 650 shooting days.
