page_title: The Oceanides
section_title: European premiere
hierarchical_section_title: The Oceanides / History / Performances / European premiere
caption_attribution_description: English: en:Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927), Swedish composer and pianist.
context_page_description: The Oceanides, Op. 73, is a single-movement tone poem for orchestra written in 1913–14 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius. The piece, which refers to the nymphs in Greek mythology who inhabited the Mediterranean Sea, premiered on 4 June 1914 at the Norfolk Music Festival in Connecticut with Sibelius conducting. Praised upon its premiere as "the finest evocation of the sea ... ever ... produced in music", the tone poem, in D major, consists of two subjects, said to represent the playful activity of the nymphs and the majesty of the ocean, respectively. Sibelius gradually develops this material over three informal stages: first, a placid ocean; second, a gathering storm; and third, a thunderous wave-crash climax. As the tempest subsides, a final chord sounds, symbolizing the mighty power and limitless expanse of the sea.
  Stylistically, many commentators have described The Oceanides as either an outright example of Impressionism or somehow derivative of that art movement.
context_section_description: With the outbreak of World War I on 28 July 1914, The Oceanides languished. Wartime politics being what they were, Sibelius's music was seldom played outside the Nordic countries and the United States: in Germany, there was little demand for the music of an "enemy national", while in Russia, Finns were viewed as being "less than loyal subjects of the Tsar". In any case, many of Sibelius's works had been printed by German publishing houses, a detail that harmed Sibelius's reputation not only in Russia, but also Britain and the United States. According to Tawaststjerna, the war plunged Sibelius into a state of melancholy and creative struggle (the Fifth and Sixth symphonies were in the process of simultaneous gestation at this time). His response was to retreat into near solitude: he abstained from attending and giving concerts and neglected his circle of friends, and he imagined himself "forgotten and ignored, a lonely beacon of light in a deepening winter darkness".
  Sibelius was not easily stirred from his exile; friend and fellow composer Wilhelm Stenhammar, then Artistic Director and chief conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, wrote to Sibelius repeatedly to persuade him to conduct a concert of his works in Gothenburg. Believing himself duty-bound to premiere a "major work" in Sweden, such as a symphony, Sibelius—to Stenhammar's chagrin—delayed each scheduled trip. He withdrew from planned concerts for March 1914, writing to Stenhammar, "My conscience forces me to this. But when I have some new works ready next year, as I hope, it would give me great joy to perform them in Gothenburg". New arrangements were made for February 1915, but these, too, Sibelius canceled in December 1914. In the end, the indefatigable Stenhammar prevailed and new concerts were set for March 1915 ("I see yet again your great sympathy for my music. I shall come".).
  Stenhammar's efforts were rewarded with the European premiere of The Oceanides. For Sibelius, it was an opportunity to once again be an "artist on tour", feeding off the energy and "rapturous ovations" of an audience (it had been nine months since the Norfolk concerts, which now seemed a distant memory). The first concert, on March 22, featured the Second Symphony, Scènes historiques II, and two movements from Swanwhite before concluding with The Oceanides. According to Sibelius's diary, the performance was a "great success", with Stenhammar "captivated" particularly by the final number. The 24 March program retained The Oceanides, but paired it with Scènes historiques I, the Nocturne from the King Christian II Suite, a movement from Rakastava, Lemminkäinen's Return, and the Fourth Symphony. Sibelius was very pleased with the orchestra's handling of The Oceanides, calling its performance "wonderful". He goes on to note in his diary that, "After the final number [The Oceanides] there was a deafening torrent of applause, stamps, cries of bravo, a standing ovation and fanfares from the orchestra".
caption: Swedish composer, Wilhelm Stenhammar (c. 1916), a friend of Sibelius's who was key in securing the European premiere of The Oceanides for Gothenburg
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