KUULA, TOIVO (, Vaasa–, Viipuri), composer known for his dark and passionate lyricism, counterpoint and Impressionism, conductor, collector of folk songs in his home area of Southern Ostrobothnia, died from a gunshot in an argument during the Finnish Civil War.
Toivo Kuula grew up in poverty in the strict atmosphere of a home with religious roots in the Laestadian revival movement, which emphasizes absolution as a doctrine. He also inherited the strong Southern Ostrobothnian...