Welcome to Ainola
Here you can learn about the great Finnish composer Jean Sibelius and his family in the setting of his home.
Ainola is located close to Lake Tuusula in Järvenpää, about 30 minutes drive from the Finnish capital, Helsinki. It was the home of Jean Sibelius from 1904 until his death in 1957. This timber-built villa was designed by the famous Finnish architect Lars Sonck. Its distance from the hustle and bustle of the nation’s capital gave the composer the peace that he needed for his creative endeavours, while other artistic families living in the neighbourhood provided a lively social circle.
The log-built sauna, designed by Jean’s wife Aino Sibelius, was completed in 1905. In the grounds there’s are also a barn, a shed and an outhouse from the same period. In 1974 a separate service building was put up on the north-west corner of the plot, containing the ticket office, a small café and the caretaker’s quarters. The latter were later converted into a light and airy public space that now houses the café, ticket office and museum shop. Sibelius’s grave is located in the southern part of the plot, in the shade of the grand fir trees.
Jean and Aino Sibelius lived at Ainola until the end of their lives: Jean died at Ainola in 1957, Aino in 1969. After both their parents had passed away, the daughters of Jean and Aino sold Ainola to the Finnish State in 1972. Currently Ainola is a special museum under the auspices of the National Board of Antiquities. The Ainola Foundation administers the property in this capacity.
