Aarre Merikanto

Aarre Merikanto (29 June 1893 – 28 September 1958) was a Finnish composer.

Life and career He was born in Helsinki, Grand Duchy of Finland. His childhood he spent in Vilppula, Finland. He married Meri Grönmark in 1919. They had two daughters. He later married Evi Sylvia Mähönen. They had two sons, Ukri Uolevi Merikanto, a sculptor and Pan Ylermi Merikanto.

He is considered a key figure in early Finnish modernism (together with Väinö Raitio and Ernest Pingoud) and several of his works, most notably the opera Juha, have obtained posthumous attention. As professor of composition in the Sibelius Academy (1951–1958) Merikanto taught several Finnish composers of the next generation, including Einojuhani Rautavaara, Usko Meriläinen, Aulis Sallinen and Paavo Heininen.

Merikanto was diagnosed with lung cancer in the summer 1957, and he died on 28 September the following year, in Helsinki, aged 65.

Main works

Aarre Merikanto (right) with his father Oskar Merikanto in 1919. Juha, opera (1922; premiered in 1963) Symphony No. 1 in B minor (1916) Symphony No. 2 in A major (1918) Symphonic Study (1928) Symphony No. 3 (1953) Violin Concerto No. 1 (1915) Violin Concerto No. 2 (1925) Violin Concerto No. 3 (1931; destroyed) Violin Concerto No. 4 (1954) Piano Concerto No. 1 (1913) Piano Concerto No. 2 (1937) Piano Concerto No. 3 (1955) Cello Concerto No. 1 (1919) Konzertstück, for cello and chamber orchestra (1923) Cello Concerto No. 2 (1941) Lemminkäinen, symphonic poem (1916) Pan, symphonic poem (1924) Notturno, symphonic poem (1928) The Abduction of Kyllikki, symphonic poem (1936) Schott Concerto, for violin, clarinet, horn, and string sextet (1925) Nonet (1926) Fantasia (1923) Ten Pieces for Orchestra (1930) Olympic Fanfare (1939) Song of the City by the Sea, cantata (1949–1950) Genesis, cantata (1955)

Chronological list of compositions