Finland Guide
Helsinki and the south
Järvenpää
Around 40km north of Helsinki in JÄRVENPÄÄ, easily reached by either bus or train, is Ainola (May– Sept Tues– Sun 10am–5pm; €5.50) – the house where Jean Sibelius lived from 1904 with his wife, Aino (sister of the artist Eero Järnefelt), after whom the place is named.
Though now regarded as one of the twentieth century's greatest composers, Jean Sibelius, born in Hämeenlinna in 1865, had no musical background, and by the age of 19 was enrolled on a law course at Helsinki University. He had, however, developed a youthful passion for the violin and took a class at the capital's Institute of Music. Law was soon forgotten as Sibelius's real talents were recognized, and his musical studies took him to the cultural hotbeds of the day, Berlin and Vienna. Returning to Finland to teach at the Institute, Sibelius soon gained a government grant, which enabled him to begin composing full time, the first concert of his works taking place in 1892. His early pieces were inspired by the Finnish folk epic, the Kalevala, and by the nationalist movement of the times; in 1899 the country's Russian rulers banned performances of Sibelius's rousing Finlandia under any name that suggested its patriotic sentiment – it was instead published simply as "Opus 26 No. 7".
While the overtly nationalistic elements in Sibelius's work mellowed in later years, his music continued to reflect a very Finnish obsession with nature: "Other composers offer their public a cocktail," he said, "I offer mine pure spring water."
The house is just the kind of home you'd expect for a man who included representations of flapping swans' wings in his music: a tranquil place, close to lakes and forests. The wood-filled grounds are as atmospheric as the building, which is a place of pilgrimage for devotees.
While in Järvenpää, it would be a pity to miss out on a visit to the Halosenniemi Museum (Tues– Sun: May– Aug 10am–6pm; Sept– April noon–5pm; €5.50). On the Tuusula Lakeside road, just a few minutes' walk from Ainola, this is the rustic home of Pekka Halonen, one of Finland's most renowned artists.