Paavo Berglund, the greatest among Finnish conductors, has died aged 82 on January 25, 2012. Naturally, I am not old enough to have seen any of the forefathers of Finnish conducting like Georg Schneevoigt or Tauno Hannikainen, but from the lot I witnessed first hand Berglund appealed to me most by far. He was the "apollonian" conductor, the seeker of truth and clarity as opposed to "dionysian" Leif Segerstam, another of Finnish greats.

The video clip above is a rare glimpse at conductor's work behind the scenes - a pre-rehearsal session with the pianist Jorge Bolet. Berglund was notorious for his meticulous preparation before concerts. I have heard from people who were close to him, that on a beautiful summer day he would sit outside in the park with a score of a Brahms symphony he had conducted for dozens of times, studying it again like a beginner. He was unreasonably harsh in his self criticism, always trying to find a way to improve his own as well as the orchestra's performance. He usually came to the orchestra with his own set of parts he had corrected and bowed by his own hand.

For me Paavo Berglund stands head and shoulders above the whole "Finnish conducting mafia". He was a deep and serious musician who made it to the top by his sheer hard and honest work and by the strength of his vision. He earned his credentials at a time when no international music management was in any way interested in Finland. Today he probably would be turned down by the agents simply for the lack of fancy (or any!) hairdo.

I had the privilege to hear some of Berglund's last concerts in Finland as well as chat with him in a couple of occasions. What connected us besides our nationality and occupation was Kurt Masur - Berglund's good friend and my boss during my time with Orchestre National de France.

Paavo Berglund conducted his last concert on 1st of June 2007 in Paris, Salle Pleyel, with Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France.