Jean Sibelius joined the Freemasons in August 1922 and later composed valuable ritual music for the Finnish Freemasons. In the accompanying article, Reijo Ahtokari provides the background of Freemasonry and Sibelius’s relationship with it.

Sibelius and Op. 113 / Sibelius as a Freemason
Written by Reijo Ahtokari based on the research of Einari Marvia

When the ideas of the Enlightenment began to spread, an old moral philosophy, Freemasonry, also began to take concrete form. Several theories have been proposed regarding the early stages of Freemasonry. The most convincing of these seems to be the idea that Freemasonry is based on old church-building guilds. These guilds had a strict hierarchy with traditions of apprentices, journeymen, and masters, while also being strong communities with well-preserved trade secrets.

Perhaps to gain higher status, the guilds in England began to admit prominent individuals into their guilds or lodges during the last decades of the 17th century, even though they did not belong to the craft. As the real masons gradually became a minority within the membership, they began to plan the foundations for a construction activity that did not require tools or drawings, i.e., the refinement of one’s own inner temple. Based on old Gothic building rules and several moral teachings, they began to create a foundational rule for Masonic activities. In 1723, Reverend James Anderson published the first Constitution at the request of the Grand Lodge of London. Thus, the foundation of a new community, Freemasonry, had been created in the spirit of the Enlightenment. The fundamental teachings were reverence for the Creator, helping fellow human beings, and building one’s own inner self.

Freemasonry spread rapidly to continental Europe and soon also across the ocean to America. Swedish officials who had been at the French court brought the idea to Sweden as early as 1735 when the first Masonic event was held on Swedish soil. For Finland, a separate lodge, St. Augustin, was established as early as 1756. The lodge operated with varying activity until 1809 when the Russian victory in the Finnish War put an end to its activities. During St. Augustin’s operational period, 460 men joined it; almost 61 percent of the members were officers.

At the dawn of Finnish independence, some men who had emigrated from Finland to America and become acquainted with Freemasonry in their new homeland began to consider whether the ideas of Freemasonry could be reintroduced in Finland. The most active among them were lawyer Toivo H. Nekton (formerly Itkonen) and engineer J. E. Tuokkola, who returned to Finland in 1918. The possibility of establishing a lodge was discussed with the Grand Lodge of the State of New York, and when it seemed feasible, they quickly took action.

Both Nekton and Tuokkola compiled long lists of potential members for the upcoming lodge. Already in the first drafts, “the world-famous composer” Professor Jean Sibelius can be seen. In addition to him, the original versions included General C. G. Mannerheim, Archbishop Gustaf Johansson, architect Lars Sonck, painter Pekka Halonen, and composer Robert Kajanus. It is not known whether Nekton had discussions with them or how they felt about the proposal, but none of them were on the final candidate list.

When the imminent founding of Suomi Lodge No. 1 was discussed in a small circle on August 14, 1922, the minutes noted that “Jean Sibelius will compose a distinctive, genuinely Finnish music for the lodge.” Toivo H. Nekton, who was an active choir singer, had already discussed the matter with his old friend. The minutes also contain a note that Jean Sibelius and Sigurd Wettenhovi-Aspa “are exempted from the registration fee and the first year’s membership fee.” It was hoped that Sibelius would be the lodge’s organist. Wettenhovi-Aspa was granted an exemption from the fee because he had promised – a promise he never fulfilled – to write a history of Freemasonry in Finland.

On August 22, 1922, the Grand Master of the State of New York performed the ritual degree work before a group of distinguished guests gathered at the House of the Estates, while one of the newcomers was a candidate, and Sibelius and almost thirty other men stood by and watched. Suomi Lodge began its activities with great enthusiasm. During the first year of operation, Sibelius attended the lodge’s meetings no less than six times. His visits became less frequent in the following years, perhaps due to travels abroad.

The initiators of Suomi Lodge had thus spoken with Sibelius about music for a Finnish Masonic ritual, but after that, there are no records of the matter in the minutes of the first years. However, it seems that Sibelius always sat behind the magnificent Mannborg harmonium when he attended the lodge’s meetings; there was no organ yet. Since the initiators of the lodge had placed great emphasis from the beginning on the idea that music should have a significant role in Finnish Masonic work, there was a lot of music at every session from the start. The programs included compositions by, among others, Mozart, Beethoven, Handel, and Bach, as well as familiar hymns. When the composer sat behind the harmonium at lodge evenings, one could hear fine improvisations alongside other music, including the Funeral March, which later became associated with the third degree of Freemasonry and was almost finished when it resonated in April 1923. Sometimes, the player seemed to forget the time and place in his enthusiasm, and the master had to discreetly interrupt the music so that the ritual could proceed.

However, it took some time before a dedicated ritual music was ready, and it seemed as if Sibelius had forgotten the whole matter. Wäinö Sola (he had become a Freemason in April 1923 when Sibelius was the lodge’s part-time organist), unaware of the origins of the matter, suggested at a brotherly meal in 1926 that Sibelius should be asked to compose a dedicated ritual music for the Finnish Freemasons. The proposal was enthusiastically supported, and the next day Sola was able to present the request to Sibelius, who agreed. Suomi Lodge decided to support the project financially; an opportunity arose when Suomi Lodge’s own brother, pharmacist Berndt Forsblom, donated 10,000 marks for the purpose. The amount was paid to Sibelius before the end of the year.

Now Sibelius became interested, and early in the morning of January 7, 1927, he called Sola and asked him and brother Linko (Ernst Linko had received his Masonic degree a couple of weeks earlier than Sibelius himself) to come that evening to the Suomi Lodge session where the ritual music he had composed would be performed for the first time. At the event, Sibelius gave them both the sheet music, and they had to undergo a trial by fire, a prima vista performance. Already in the morning, Sibelius had come to listen to the music played by the lodge’s regular organist Arvi Karvonen. However, the harmonium could not produce the forte that the composer desired, and thus Mannborg received a grumpy sermon from the furious composer. The entire music was not performed that evening, but at least three ritual music compositions were played for the first time then. The lodge was to install Samuli Sario as the lodge’s master; as a skilled orator, Sario was also involved in translating and drafting the text for the ritual music.

However, it took only five days until the entire ritual music was ready for its premiere. With Sibelius himself present in the lodge, Wäinö Sola and Arvi Karvonen performed the entire ritual music for the assembled brothers on the evening of January 12, 1927. Also present was the Deputy Grand Master of the Finnish Grand Lodge, V.M.J. Viljanen, who, in his warm-hearted speech, thanked the composer and noted that Sibelius’s worldwide reputation was still “clarified and immortalized” by the new ritual music. The leadership of the Finnish Grand Lodge had well understood the value of the Master’s great work and decided to invite Sibelius as an honorary member; Viljanen presented the invitation to the composer, who announced that he would gratefully accept the honorary membership. Later, only two brothers have been honored with this great recognition. On the evening of the ritual music’s premiere, Sibelius handed over the music he had composed to his own lodge, Suomi Lodge, and announced that the other two Finnish lodges, Tammer and Phoenix, could use it in their meetings. With the composer’s permission, Sola copied the sheet music for them, and since then, all Finnish lodges have used the revered composer brother’s music in all their meetings.

It seems that this was the last evening Sibelius visited his lodge; at least his name does not appear in Suomi Lodge’s minutes thereafter. When Wäinö Sola became the master of the newly founded St. Johannes Lodge No. 4 in early January 1928, he extended several invitations to Sibelius to participate in St. Johannes meetings. Sibelius honored the lodge’s ten-year celebration with his presence, but later records of his visits have not been found.

At this stage, the ritual music included eight compositions. Avaushymni (The Opening Hymn) opened the lodge meeting calmly and solemnly, Alttarin valmistus (The Preparation of the Altar) is a short and solemn hymn, and the third part is used as solemn procession music full of mystique. Sibelius did not name the fourth part of the ritual music but simply noted it as No. 4; for the fifth part, he wrote the name Valoa (Light); today, this most brilliant jewel of the ritual music is known as Sulkemishymni (The Closing Hymn). In the composition of the closing hymn, which is now known as Salem, Sibelius was likely inspired by a poem written by Viktor Rydberg and skillfully translated into Finnish by Samuli Sario. Salem was performed at the opening of the New York World’s Fair in 1938; it was included in the first American edition of the ritual music, just published by the American publisher Galaxy. The composition No. 7 (still unnamed at this stage) was intended by Sibelius for the Masonic ritual, with Viktor Rydberg’s poem Arioso used as the text. The final number of the ritual music, the funeral march Marche funèbre, is one of the most striking compositions in the suite and has come into use as mourning music even outside the brotherhood. Later, Sibelius’s chorale Suur’ olet Herra (Mighty Are You, Lord) was added to the suite. Jean Sibelius’s last compositional works were Veljesvirsi and Ylistyshymni, completed in 1948 and incorporated into the Finnish Masonic ritual.

In Masonic events, much more than just ritual music was performed as early as the 1920s. Even before the ritual music was finished, Wäinö Sola had the idea of a solo or choral version of the Finlandia Hymn to be performed with Masonic lyrics. The text he wrote was completed in early February 1937. Sola sent his text to Sibelius without mentioning who had written the words. Sibelius accepted the words and arranged the hymn section of Finlandia for a male choir. At the ten-year meeting of St. Johannes Lodge No. 4 held on April 21, the brothers Wäinö Sola, Martti Similä, Sulo Räikkönen, and A.O. Turunen performed the hymn with lyrics as a quartet while saluting the Finnish flag, with the composer himself listening to the performance.

At this event, a music fund bearing Sibelius’s name was established. Wäinö Sola first deposited the check that had been promised to Sibelius (but which he refused to accept) for the honor that had come to the lodge. The lodge’s master, O.J.A Viljanen, contributed an initial sum to the fund, and instead of the usual widow’s mite, a monetary donation was collected for the fund that evening.

The brothers received Sibelius’s ritual music with enthusiasm. Sola described the mood in his letter to the pharmacist in Kiuruvesi, Berndt Forsblom, as follows:

“Sibelius’s music is now complete, and it is wonderful. There is more singing than you might imagine. Sibba has sought words all the way from Confucius and found beautiful poetic gems from Rydberg, Schiller, and Goethe. The poem by Simelius that you suggested has received the most delightful expression. Sibba’s compositions can be performed either with or without singing, and the funeral march is absolutely fantastic. Suomi Lodge can be proud to own this music. – – – Imagine if it were a grand organ in a large church with an orchestra, I say that many would be struck with awe.”

With Opus 113, there were also some issues regarding copyright. When the Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of New York visited Finland in 1933, he heard Sibelius’s ritual music for the first time and was very impressed. A couple of years later, Grand Master Axel Solitander brought a gift copy of the music to the mother lodge in America, even though Sibelius had forbidden it to be printed. When the communication was slow, and when the copyright regulations of America and Finland seemed to be at odds with each other, the Grand Lodge of New York had the sheet music for the ritual music printed in 1937; this sheet music did not reach Finland until 1948! The next edition could be made as a collaboration between the Grand Lodges. The Finnish editions are from 1969 and 1992.

Brother Sibelius received several Masonic honors in addition to the aforementioned honorary membership in the Grand Lodge and Suomi Lodge. The organization remembered him on his 70th birthday with a beautiful silver plate, and the American Lodge of Research invited him to become a member. Three years later – on May 4, 1938 – the Grand Lodge of New York awarded him the highest distinction, the Grand Master’s Medal. The collection organized around Sibelius’s 75th birthday has already been mentioned above; again, the Freemasons organized a collection in September 1945 when they planned a fundraising effort for the repair of the main building of Ainola. They had also been in contact with New York, where help was promised, but Sibelius himself expressed the wish that the fundraising effort should cease. Suomi Lodge remembered its honorary member once more on his 85th birthday by sending him a gilded miniature jewel for the lodge’s organist, made especially for him.

In the post-war years, Wäinö Sola was the brother who most actively maintained contact with Ainola. He visited there almost regularly; the main topic of their discussions was, of course, music – perhaps the ritual music was still relevant to the composer. The world of Masonic ideas seems to have deepened in his mind over the years, and his expressed thought “Everything is a symbol” still fits both music and Freemasonry.

When the news of the Grand Master’s passing reached the brothers, Wäinö Sola wrote the following moving verses in the Freemasons’ own magazine Koilliskulma:

“Deep roots were etched into the barren earth,
The crown of the tree carved songs into the sky,
Moved the boundary lines of centuries,
Brought truth to the myth of titans.

Now the autumn wind blows wistfully,
The fabric is wet with the tears of sorrow,
He who long stood tall has fallen,
He heard the call from the East and left.

Man is born, lives, and dies,
A vibration in the ether sounds eternal.”

Jean Sibelius’s Musique religieuse, Opus 113, is an invaluable treasure for Finnish Freemasonry while also telling the world of a great Finnish Freemason. Even in the 1960s, Finnish Freemasonry was little known in the world; for example, the comprehensive encyclopedia The Ten Thousand Famous Freemasons mentions Jean Sibelius as the only Finn. However, a regrettable error has crept into the factual presentation text: it claims that Sibelius became blind during his last years. This information is incorrect, even though the composer suffered from cataracts in his final years.