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Ilmari Hannikainen

Toivo Ilmari Hannikainen (19 October 1892, in Jyväskylä – 25 July 1955, in Kuhmoinen) was a Finnish composer and virtuoso pianist.

Hannikainen was the son of Pekka Juhani Hannikainen and the brother of Väinö Hannikainen, both of whom were composers and of Tauno Hannikainen who was a conductor. After studying at the University of Helsinki (1911–14), he became a pupil of Franz Schreker at the Musikakademie in Vienna, and continued his studies with Alexander Siloti in Saint Petersburg (1915–17) and with Alfred Cortot in Paris (1919). Returning to Finland, he taught piano at the Helsinki Conservatory and later gained a Professorship at the Sibelius Academy.

Hannikainen steered Finnish classical music from late Romanticism towards Impressionism. In addition to his piano miniatures, which best illustrated this development, he composed one opera, one piano concerto, one piano quartet, lieder, and film scores (notably, Sången om den eldröda blomman, Sweden, 1934).

Hannikainen drowned during a sailing trip in Kuhmoinen in 1955. Some musical colleagues, like Aarre Merikanto, considered his death a suicide. He is buried in the Hietaniemi Cemetery in Helsinki.

In the 1970s, the Ilmari Hannikainen Pianokilpailu (Ilmari Hannikainen Piano Competition) was created dedicated to Hannikainen. In 2020, the competition renewed its format style.

Birth and Death Data: Born October 19, 1892 (Jyväskylä), Died July 25, 1955 (Kuhmoinen)

Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1914 - 1929

Roles Represented in DAHR: composer

= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.

Recordings

Company Matrix No. Size First Recording Date Title Primary Performer Description Role Audio
Victor B-20104 10-in. 6/12/1917 Rannalla istuja Elli Suokas Female vocal solo, with orchestra composer  
Columbia 39675 10-in. 12/4/1914 Rannalla istuja Juho Koskelo Male vocal solo, with orchestra composer  
Gramophone BE1573 10-in. 5/18/1929 Äidin siimät Hanna Granfelt Female vocal solo, with orchestra composer  
Gramophone BS2944 10-in. before June 1929. Jesus gör mig stilla Folke Andersson Male vocal solo, with piano composer  

Citation

Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Hannikainen, Ilmari," accessed March 29, 2024, https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/104859.

Hannikainen, Ilmari. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved March 29, 2024, from https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/104859.

"Hannikainen, Ilmari." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 29 March 2024.

DAHR Persistent Identifier

URI: https://adp.library.ucsb.edu/names/104859

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