I suggest this for my school orchestra

Friend: what’s in your playlist? Me: it’s a little complicated.

This concerto creates such a feeling of "massiveness" in me it's unreal

I have listened to music for 60 years and just discovered this. Love it

After hearing the first movement, I could nearly cry. Who knew such beautiful music could be produced with the smashing of all the upper keys of a piano!!

When something is deeply disturbing and soothing at the same time, you know it's a masterpiece.

I discovered this during the height of the pandemic and this was essentially my gateway piece to the avant-garde aesthetic and to the contemporary classical music scene. I remember during that time I was obsessed with Debussy (still obsessedwith Debussy), Sibelius, Stravinsky and Shostakovich and I was looking for more new and exciting music. The algorithm recommended this video and I've never looked back ever since. Since then I've discovered a hidden world of beautiful, complex, and thought provoking music.

This would be the perfect music for a documentary about the birth of the universe.

Laura deserves mad respect for that piano part, it looks like utter hell to play. While I didn't like this piece in the beginning, after listening to it a few times and understanding the underlying structure, I now really appreciate this concerto and the composer.

Rest In Piece, Einojuhani :'(

This song makes me feel an emotion that doesn’t exist

I'm a big fan of Rautavaara but this is beyond awesome and devilishly difficult... congratulations Laura Mikkola!

My new favorite piece of music. HOLY COW. Sweeping, sparkling, washes of color and expressive, breathtaking harmony pushing the limits of consonance… this is not a piano concerto, it’s a concerto for two orchestras where all of one of the orchestras’ parts is being played by a pianist 😂 The way he trades figures between the two voices, in the first movement passing sparkling flourishes in the flutes and violins to the piano when the orchestra takes over the melody… in the second movement where the orchestra plays the pedal bass, and later the piano acts as pedal bass under pianissimo orchestral chords… and then. Then. The simple audacious and bold move to place ALL of the harmony, melody, and rhythm in the piano while the orchestra is playing unison melody accompaniment halfway through mvmt 2… that’s INSANE, and the fact that he pulls it off is even MORE insane- the PIANO IS ACCOMPANYING THE ORCHESTRA!!!!!! And that third movement, it’s like the piece has suddenly broken free from the harsh and color-drenched harmony of the first two movements, and is filled with all this unbridled energy, like it’s almost trying to run away from the harmonic language to something more traditionally consonant, and then, WOOSH!!! The sweeping, planing clusters crash into the texture like they had always been there all along and you just didn’t realize. The pure mad genius of this piece’s construction left me actually awestruck at that moment, when he brought it all together and I realized it was so stupid of me not to have seen it earlier- the traditionally consonant passage was not running away from the chromaticism and clusters; they were separate facets of one wholistic musical language. The actual chord progression lexicon he uses in mvmt 3 is no different from the rest of the piece, it has just been dissected from the full texture. When he puts it back together it’s like all those clustered notes fill in and cushion around that more traditional harmonic structure to create that vast, sweeping, honestly epic and moving sonic vista of the first movement. I guess in a way, the second mvmt dissects the harsher edges and dissonances of the texture, the third dissects the rounded and consonant chordal lexicon, and together they create that first movement which pulled me in so. I have training in classical theory and composition, sure, but I’m not really an avid listener of classical music (except baroque for sone reason). Just as I’m a jazz musician and hardly listen to most mainstream jazz (except for 30’s-40’s big band, which, in a way, is the baroque music of jazz. Think about it👀). I appreciate the music of both genres and I live in it, but I don’t usually listen to it for fun. This is the second time I started a 20 minute classical piece I had never heard of before, expecting to click away after 3 to 5 minutes, and instead became so enraptured that I hardly noticed the time passing before the video was done. The first time was Rautavaara’s Cantus Arcticus. I think I have a new composer to deep dive into. 😂☺️ Cmaj7, I have commented this before, but thank you. I know taste is subjective, but you have such *exquisite* taste, and I have found so may fantastic composers, inspirations, and entertaining music from your channel. You have enriched YEARS of my life as a musician AND person, and I appreciate that deeply. ❤️❤️❤️ Edit: some newer thoughts after returning to this piece a dozen times or so over the past few months: First off, a correction. The second movement doesn’t purely deconstruct the “harsher” elements of the harmonic language; it is also filled with lyricism in the first half. If anything, it possibly separates out the lyricism and more traditional harmony from the harshness of the clusters, isolating them in two separate sections, before the final movement reunites them. Corrections aside, I have to say that I have finally nailed down more specifically why this piece is so enchanting to me. Other commenters have expressed how it proves that high romanticism and modernity are not opposites, and I think that truly captures a sentiment so central to my identity. I am a person who loves and appreciates vintage fashion and music, who loves storytelling and fantasy, who treats every day’s outfit as a character to step into, every day’s errands as an experience to live out. In short, I’m a romantic at heart. Often in the vintage community there is an expression, “Vintage Fashion, not Vintage Values”. People in my community love to express ourselves with fashions, items, and other material artifacts of bygone eras even if we disagree with the attitudes and policies of those eras. We are also a testament to that statement that romanticism and modernism are not opposites. Personally, I think making every day and every moment into an experience, a page from a story, enriches your life to the fullest potential, and it’s completely possible to live in this way while still being practical. It’s kind of like other sentiments I’ve seen expressed of “you should always use your best things”; i. e. every day can be a special day if you choose to make it one. So in a way, the lush lyricism and enchanting chordal undercarriage of this dauntingly dissonant, rhythmically dense, and harshly contrasting music captures this ideal, of being romantic and modern simultaneously. Of course, you might say, that is all fine and well to analyze in that way, but that depth of thought can’t possibly be registering through your subconscious and causing you to like this piece on your first listen-through. However I’d disagree. The basic character of the music very elementally portrays this concept in a way that is immediately emotionally accessible. It has an alien and lush quality to it, but also, in a strange way, a sort of sophisticated playfullness and whimsy. That might sound strange at first, but really, it does!! The third movement is the most obvious example of this whimsy, but there are moments throughout in which a rhythmic phrase or a twist of harmony reveal this playful nature of the music, in a way which very directly correlates to the playful romanticism of vintage fashion, or “living every day like it’s a special day”. I honestly think that aspect of whimsy is so forward in my subconscious identity and so forward in this music’s quality that they resonated the first time I heard it, even if I couldn’t describe what resonated within me. Just some personal thoughts to share with the internet, since none of my friends would understand ANY of this if I started babbling to them about it, and I REALLY LOVE THIS PIECE!!!

An alternative title might be "key signatures are stupid". This is brilliant stuff, makes me want to get out of the comfort key signatures provide.

Laura is officially the Rautavaara pianist. Tremendous job!

After all of the dissonance, the DM7 chord at the end of the first movement is probably the most triumphant, satisfying conclusion to any piece I've ever heard.

This is how i would explain my life at this moment.

this piece scares me for some reason. It's so beautiful, yet so terrifying.

The perfect union of late Romantic/20th Century.

I have a ''bittersweet'' memory of watching/listening to this video. I was up one morning waiting for my mom to finish getting ready, and take me to band camp. As I was listening to the music, I opened another tab to browse the web. To my own shock, it showed in the bing news highlights that a famous composer had died. I felt a light sense of sadness, one that tapered off rather quickly. I had just read that the deceased composer was Einojuhani Rautavaara. I felt that my listening to his concerto was a final farewell of sorts. I kept Mr. Rautavaara in my thoughts throughout the duration of the hell that was band camp. And by the time I arrived home from that first day at band camp, I played it once again in his honor. may you rest peacefully Einojuhani Rautavaara

What a unique musical mind Rautavaara has! This concerto exudes originality and inspiration. It is dissonant, but it actually lured me into believing I was listening to a 19th century virtuoso vehicle - I thought of Liszt's E-Flat Concerto.

OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOOD! THAT 1ST MOVEMENT IS SO INCREDIBLE!!!!!!!

What an extraordinary piece of music. It's difficult to understand for the non-musician, but you cannot deny the beauty within this chaos. This is like being inside a dream. Truly amazing.

I can't describe how incredible is this musical "story"... It takes you in another planet... Is stunning how Rautavaara takes all the different characteristics of music in 20 minutes of music, celebrating all the moments of this story. I'm in love with his musical concept. Thank you for this masterpiece Mr. Rautavaara. You've transported me in another world. P. S. : Sorry for my bad English...

Whatever the heck I just listened to, I'm literally never going to be the same this is orgasmic and I don't understand it but I have not been this mentally and emotionally stimulated and yet confused in a long, long, time. Jazz harmony ain't got nothing on those wacky chord extensions. The orchestral timbres are simply divine. I don't know what it means, but I feel every emotion at once right now.

I had not be so surprised and passionnated by a contemporary work for ages. I didn't know this composer ; I wonder why. There are Debussy, Messiaen and Bartok in this…. and all those agrégats… This is splendid, like the etudes.

The Second Mvmt. Is so beautiful! I literally cried when i heard it first. But the whole piece is just magnificent! Thanks for the upload!

Rachmaninoff: "I wrote a challenging piano concerto" Rautavaara: "Hold my elbow".

this piece makes no sense to my ears but it gives off a smell

Ok, it's definitely D major.

“Perform white key clusters with arms” WHAT

This piano concerto has easily found its way at the top of my favorite piano concertos list. It's uniqueness is unrivaled by any other of the piano concerti. Rautavarra knew exactly how the piano should be portrayed in a concerto. This piece is rich with flavor and has an almost spiritual effect on the listener...purely infinite.

I'm not at all of a fan of modern music, but this piece is breathtakingly gorgeous

I'd love to listen to this at a live peformance!

One of the best piano concertos, period. You can even tell from just the opening haha!

I fell in love with this piece after the first time I listened to it a day ago. I’ve listened to it at least ten times in the last 24 hours and it’s still just as beautiful as when I first listened to it.

contemporary music I've enjoyed too much. Bright and terribly beautiful.

That third movement starting at 17:59 is absolutely brilliant (the piano motif reminds me of Ligeti's 10th etude (Der Zauberlehrling)). The buildup to 18:52 is immensely satisfying, and repeating that same buildup but exploding it into a different conclusion at 20:29 is the perfect way to end this fantastic concerto. Rautavaara was truly a great composer, may he rest in peace.

Rautavaara pulled some clear inspiration from previous 20th century composers, but the resulting soundscape is uniquely his.

Rautavaara: *spills ink over paper* Rautavaara: Ah, it'll be fine.

00:01 Movement I - Con grandezza 09:54 Movement II - Andante 17:59 Movement III - Molto Vivace

I love this piece so much! These harmonies and phrases are so wunderful!

C'est magnifique. C'est génial, j'adore, c'est vraiment profond. J'aime les dissonances. On se croit dans un autre monde, c 'est ça que j'aime.

Ce concerto devrait faire partie des grands classiques ! Bravo à la pianiste Laura Mikkola, merveilleuse ambassadrice de cet immense compositeur !

This feels like something you would hear when meeting an angel. Terrifyingly beautiful

What a magical and truly unique composition.

I love the quotations of Scriabin's Prometheus Poem of Fire at 5:20-5:40 !! :)

It's a music that always makes my heart burning. Mother Nature's howls, warm hugs, heavenly harmonies.. It's absolutely perfect music. I've heard a lot of classical music, but I've never heard such a beautiful classic work. (except for Rautavaara's Piano Concerto No. 2)

Quite possibly the most explosive orchestral entrance of all time

theres no other composer like this guy im in love

This is the only piece of music to ever bring tears to my eyes

I think the right arm elbow comes in handy for a piece like this.

Is easier to play this concert than pronunciate the name of the composer.

Einojuhani Rautavaara:1.Zongoraverseny 1.Con grandezza 00:00 2.Andante (ma rubato) 09:54 3.Molto vivace 17:59 Laura Mikkola-zongora Királyi Skót Nemzeti Zenekar Vezényel:Hannu Lintu

Another amazing sound sculpture from composer Einojuhani Rautavaara who I'd never heard of before discovering your channel. Thanks again Cmaj7.

Love it!! Thanx for the upload..going to get the score! RIP Einojuhani and thank you for composing this.

THANK YOU for posting the Sheet music! I love this piece!

This is a modern masterpiece.

I love the amazing sounds this composer yanks out of the orchestra! A wonderful, beautiful creation. Simply could not be more exciting.

So glad I discovered this piece. What a wonderful composer-such deep emotion, honesty , and musicianship.

This is absolutely mesmerising; unsettling yet relaxing, otherworldly and yet so human Intriguing in its chaos Bewildering in its emotion I can't stop listening and I don't know why I'd want to

Breathtaking! The tonalities are amazing!

Tone cluster mastery. Eat your heart out, Cowell :P BTW it's moments like 8:30 that make this so good. Those dissonant trills in the winds sound like voices. *chills*

A masterpiece of emotions. The contrasts are simply out of this world, I love this piece.

I mean... honestly one of the most innovative beginnings of a piano concerto ever.

I don't like it, but I also like it ... I'm confused now

Aantrekkelijke interessante moderne muziek die toch heel toegankelijk is. Er zit van alles iets in. Ravel, Rachmaninoff, Messiaen en toch heeft het eigen geluid. Mooie compositie en dus een waardevolle upload. Bedankt !

Colourful and most engaging. Thanks for showing the score which is always helpful when getting one's head round an unfamiliar work!

Very beautiful, many colors and interesting harmony it works well together. It's very structured too. 👍

The horns playing that Dmaj7 Inverted Chord at the end of the first movement is just epic!

Excellent playing. The composition is hefty, large and inspiring! Some excellent food for thought for us learning composers.

Wow what a find! Amazing

I was a bit skeptical at first(because of the ridiculous chords at the beginning), but as I listened further in I heard a lot of neat things: That bombastic chord at 0:52, the woodwind trills at 3:50, and the woodwinds doing scales at 4:12(honestly my favorite part). Of all the dissonant-prone contemporary works I've heard, this one takes the cake for the right balance of harmony and atonality. Edit: The ending of the first movement, too, is spectacular.

Great piece..... somehow the third part reminds me of Ravel. I enjoyed it very much. Thank you for uploading.

Wow! Just wow! I can imagine myself sitting by a large glacially carved lake during a colorful sunset. Beautiful!

The blending of all notes and cords, form a structure of beauty that I've never seen or heard before!! Its like opening doors and rooms within yourself that you would never be able to imagine without this music... A true profound masterpiece!

I think this is the first piece of music I’ve listened to that has genuinely terrified me. What an incredible composition

Wonderful concerto. I love the melody played in clusters. Shades of Sibelius, Bartok and Ravel...but very distinctively Rautavaara.

Cette musique est positivement divine.... Richesse du discours mélodique, harmonies à couper le souffle, orchestration sans cesse renouvelée dans l’utilisation des timbres de l'orchestre, bref une babylonienne architecture sonore érigée par un humble et immense compositeur-interprète !

This is the first time I've even heard of this composer. It's a shame I didn't hear his music earlier.

Such beautiful harmonies 😍

The first chord played by the orchestra is 🥵🥵🥵

Every so often I come back to listen to this piece of music and it never gets old

That tone clusters are mind-blowing

14:44 WhaaaaaAAAAAAAT 17:59 Whoa Rautavaara hitting us with a banger out of nowhere

Along with Ligeti, the greatest master of 20th century music.

I never heard of him. Thanks for the post. Better now than never.

I can hardly read music, and I find this score amazing. It's as much fun to look at as to hear! It's like he took all the "fun" parts of Romantic Classical, and put them together.

He made the piano behaves and sounds almost like a harp.

8:52 Who knew you could use your whole arm to play!? 9:31 is such an ingenious ending!

Músico de la nueva generación con sentimiento,nostalgia,tristeza,alegría y agradecimiento al Creador, son mi sentir al escuchar sus composiciones, excelente regalo el subirlo,gracias.

beautiful lush harmonies...full of magical moments

The clusters give me images of Edward Hopper and Giorgio De Chirico. There is something dreamlike but oddly threatening about about Rautavaara's music. Never really heard anyone else say it but I consider him a Surrealist.

It's interesting to hear a large section of the 1st movement get quoted in his later Cantus Arcticus.

Now this is forever one of compositions which are in my heart.

YO I LOVE this whole piece. This is incredible

All of the people in the comments section either hating it for being dissonant (mostly people who have no idea about music, and for this reason I will not address them) or hating it for being neo romantic (mostly music people who are pretentious assholes who regard tonality as simplistic). I really don’t care whether the music is simple. What I care about is whether it is expressive and aesthetically stimulating and beautiful. And it is all of those things. The tone clusters might set off your anxiety or whatever, but he clearly uses them for a purpose. You can clearly hear the harmony despite the clusters, which I find interesting. Other cluster compositions I have heard have not had the same effect. Here they seem to me to be (very effectively) used for emphasis. They also impart a kind of apocalyptic quality to the music, and I appreciate that. And nobody seems to keep it on long enough to hear the third movement, which is so different to the rest, yet perfect in itself. I don’t care about your stupid 12 tone atonality, that shit carries no real meaning to anyone other than just to unsettle. The whole reason we have a tonal system is to create a framework for shades of meaning.

Wow! I can't really read music very well, but I am struck by how strange it looks on paper.

This is incredible. Utterly incredible

That ending is so incredibly powerful!