Koskenniemi in 1940 with the consent of the composer. The lyrics for Finlandia were written by the poet V. After minor revisions, the last tableau, Finland Awakens, became the well-known Finlandia. The song, which emphasised sacrifice and the legacy of the ancient Athens, immediately brought Sibelius the status of a national hero.Įven more important was the music composed by Sibelius for tableaux for celebrations for the Finnish Press in November 1899. The “Song of the Athenians”, a composition to a poem by Swedish poet Viktor Rydberg, was premiered in Helsinki on 26 April 1899, together with Sibelius’s First Symphony.

In 1899, after the publication of the February declaration by Emperor Nicholas II for the systematic Russification of Finland, Sibelius composed a number of works of political nature. Although recognised as a gifted composer, he was a controversial figure in Finland until the late 1890s. He turned to Finnish folk music and the rhythms of Kalevala for expressive originality. With the help of Senate grants, Sibelius studied composition in Berlin from 1889 to 1890 and in Vienna in 1890–1891. The Järnefelts’ daughter Aino would become Sibelius’s wife in 1892. Sibelius’s knowledge of the culture of the Finnish-speaking people deepened when he became acquainted with the Järnefelt family in 1889. The talented young man adopted his musical name in 1886 when he started to use his late uncle’s visiting cards, on which the uncle had had his name printed in the then fashionable French form, as Jean Sibelius. Ferruccio Busoni, who joined the teaching staff of the music institute in the autumn of 1888, encouraged Sibelius to continue composing. It soon became apparent that Sibelius’s talent found its best expression in composition. Sibelius studied composing under Martin Wegelius, the head of the music institute. Sibelius was admitted to the University of Helsinki to study law in 1885 and, in that same year, started to study the violin at the Helsinki Music Institute. The Swedish-speaking Sibelius attended the Finnish-language Hämeenlinna Normal Lyceum and passed the school’s final examination in 1885. The boy was able to complete secondary school thanks to financial support from his uncle. Sibelius was orphaned under the age of three, when his father, a physician, died of typhoid in the summer of 1868. Sibelius was inspired by national themes which he gave a modern treatment in his works.

Still in the 2010s, Jean Sibelius (1865–1957) is a world-renowned composer. Jean Sibelius shaped Finnish culture and made Finland known around the world

Sibelius composer