Jean Sibelius was born in Hämeenlinna in 1865. Janne’s family consisted of his father, City Medical Officer Christian Gustaf Sibelius, mother Maria Charlotta Borg and sister Linda. Later his younger brother Christian was born.

Janne´s father died when the boy was two and a half years old. The family had to give up their residence and move to Janne’s grandmother Catharina Borg, a widow of the dean, who lived in Hämeenlinna together with her unmarried daughters.

Even though the family had to move to Janne’s grandmother and there was no inheritance from the father, Janne’s childhood was carefree and secure. Sibelius has told that he had a recollection of a cigar-scented father at his childhood home and explained that he himself was smoking because the scent of cigars brought childhood memories to his mind.

At the age of seven Janne started the Swedish pedagogium of Ewa Sawonius. When Janne was eight, he was sent to a Finnish preparatory school and at the age of eleven he started at the Hämeenlinna Normal Lyceum.

The Lyceum had been founded only three years earlier, in 1873. The building at the corner of the present streets Sibeliuksenkatu and Lukiokatu was referred to as ”the stone school”. The headmaster of the Lyceum was Gabriel Geitlin and the music teacher was Emil Genetz. Both Janne and many of his classmates became nationally important men in Finland.

Hopeless dreamer

Janne’s school years did not go without worries: he had to repeat the fifth form. According to the teachers, the problem was not really Janne’s skills but the fact that the boy just was a hopeless dreamer.

The atmosphere of the Lyceum, which was founded to become the base of the national awakening of Finland, contributed greatly to the Finnish nationalism that later influenced the composer’s music.

At home Janne’s family spoke Swedish, which was a commonly used language in educated bourgeois families at that time. At school, however, Janne was able to read the national epic Kalevala in Finnish and its characters stuck in his mind. Thus, Janne got acquainted with Kullervo’s story which later became a source of inspiration for his music.

At the library of the Lyceum Janne found books on the theory of music. At home he was influenced by the new Finnish literature, such as The Tales of Ensign Stål, fairy tales by Topelius and the Tales of a barber-surgeon.

Already at the age of seven Janne started piano lessons under his aunt’s guidance. A couple of years earlier he had already been practising playing on his own. At ten Janne composed his first piece of music called Vattendroppar (water drops). Earlier Janne had already been practising composing but he had not written down the music notes. Performing in a trio together with his siblings inspired Janne to write more little compositions.

In spring 1880 Janne started to study violin playing under conductor Gustaf Levander’s guidance. Levander was at that time considered the best violin pedagogue in Hämeenlinna. Inspired by the violin Janne abandoned all his other hobbies.

The first performances

Janne was doing well in his music studies and he progressed rapidly. He had his first performances at school celebrations and upper class homes and always felt very nervous before them. He also performed at quartet evenings and the better a player he became, the more often he was invited.

After more than ten years of violin studies Janne noticed that he was not skilful enough to become a violin virtuoso. He also did not enjoy performing very much because of his nervousness.

In 1885 Janne matriculated from the lyceum. His marks in the matriculation examination certificate were slightly better than the marks 6 and 7 in his general upper secondary school certificate. After the matriculation examination Janne moved to Helsinki. 
 
 
Sibelius died in 1957 at his home Ainola.

Sibelius’ Hämeenlinna

There is a painted portrait of Sibelius in 1930 in the assembly hall of the lyceum. Sibelius was elected honorary citizen of Hämeenlinna in 1939. The Sibelius archive was established in the 1930s and besides Hämeenlinna has its own Sibelius Society.

In 1955 a street was named after Sibelius in the centre of Hämeenlinna and the birthplace of Sibelius was opened in 1965. The concert series “Music in Sibelius' Home Town” has been organized already for more than ten years. Also a Janne violin competition has been organized.

The Sibelius statue was erected in the Sibelius Park one year before the 100th anniversary of Sibelius. Erecting a statue was discussed already during the great master composer’s life but he forbade it absolutely.

”No statues, no monuments, play my music.”

Source: People from Hämeenlinna 1693-1989 (city of Hämeenlinna)