He was, after Sibelius, “the most famous and popular of Finnish composers … In an output running to over 150 compositions, with dozens of orchestral pieces, Rautavaara’s eight symphonies are one of his important contributions to 20th-century music.” The Seventh, titled Angel of Light, “marked a new breakthrough for Rautavaara to a newer, wider audience, his music no longer the preserve of the critics and cognoscenti.”