Jean Sibelius was born into a middle class family in a small country town in Finland.

He was encouraged in developing his musical talent but he was fifteen before it began to really interest him.

At first he wanted to be a violinist but soon turned to composing. By his early twenties he had already mastered his craft and he went on to produce a wonderful and very individual range of orchestral music, leaving him as one of the giants of early twentieth century music.