Opis
Interpretation of Jean Sibelius' masterpeace 'En Saga' (A Legend), illustrated with paintings of the well-known Finnish artist Aleksi (Axel) Gallen-Kallela.
The video story narrates the Finnish oral folklore and mythology of the 19-century epic poet "Kalevala", written by Elias Lönnrot.
The Kalevala is regarded as the national epic of Karelia and Finland and is one of the most significant works of Finnish literature. The Kalevala was instrumental in the development of the Finnish national identity and the intensification of Finland's language strife that ultimately led to Finland's independence from Russia in 1917.
The work is also well known internationally and has partly influenced, for example, J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium (i.e. Middle-earth mythology).
'En Saga' is performed by the Lathi Symphony Orchestra, conductor Osmo Vänskä.
Idea and video production by Ray Vandenburg.