Cosmopolitan Erkki Melartin
Melartin was also an exceptionally international Finnish composer. He travelled widely in Europe and, in the 1910s, made a rare long-haul journey to Egypt, India and Sri Lanka. These trips were not merely for recreation, but represented a deep spiritual and artistic search. Ancient Egyptian cultures, Indian religions and theosophical thought made a great impression on him. Among other places, he visited the headquarters of the theosophical movement in Adyar, India, and Eastern mysticism began to be reflected in his later work as well.
On his travels in Europe, Melartin moved particularly in the cultural circles of Vienna, Berlin, Italy and Paris. Vienna became an important musical home for him, where he absorbed Central European late-Romantic influences. In Italy, he sought both inspiration and relief for his lung disease. He recorded his experiences in diaries, letters and travel writing, which have later been published in the work With My Own Eyes: The Lazy Man Travels to the Equator.
Listen to Tuire Ranta-Meyer's podcast about Malartin's journeys
