A Requiem in Our Time - Einojuhani Rautavaara

This post is a departure from the historic focus of the blog and a chance to shed light on a work by the Finnish composer Einojuhani Rautavaara. Here is a Spotify playlist I found online of a sampling of Rautavaara's music.
Rautavaara in the 1950's

This brass work is entitled A Requiem in Our Time and was the recipient of the Thor Johnson Brass Composition Award's First Prize in 1954. This four-movement liturgical work for brass and percussion can be heard here. The instrumentation is as follows:

B-flat Trumpet I-II-III-IV
F Horn I-II-III-IV
Trombone I-II-III
Euphonium
Tuba
Timpani
Bell (not glockenspiel)
Cymbals
Glockenspiel
Snare Drum
Xylophone

Rautavaara passed away on July 27, 2016. An obituary can be found here.

Rautavaara in 2003

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