Both the composer Jean Sibelius and the swan have appeared on Finnish currency. Sibelius often looked to this majestic bird’s soaring flight patterns and haunting cries for musical inspiration. In The Swan of Tuonela, he invokes the plaintive call of the English horn as the voice of the swan in the land of the dead in a Finnish folk legend. To complete the FWSO’s season, Concertmaster Michael Shih steps into the spotlight for a brand-new concerto by American composer Michael Gandolfi before the orchestra concludes with another work by Sibelius, his soulful second symphony.