In 2017, 500 years had passed since the beginning of the Reformation. The German priest and theologian Martin Luther published his 95 theses in Wittenberg in 1517. The theses led to disruption within the Catholic Church and to the forming of the Protestant church. This process has influenced world history and has also been important for the development of church music.
Musicians of the King’s Road was the first cultural actor in Finland that signed the Luther 2017 license agreement and was approved an official Luther Decade partner.
Three St Matthew Passions
Since 2013, Musicians of the King’s Road has performed six times the St Matthew Passion written by the German composer Melchior Vulpius. According to historical sources, the work had been the very first polyphonic passion composition ever performed in Finland. The Passion performances have been given within a liturgical context and they have all received remarkably large attendance.
In 2017, the year of the Reformation anniversary, Musicians of the King’s Road performed three St Matthew Passions that had been written before the one by Vulpius (by Antoine de Longueval, Jakob Meiland and Johann Walter). These can be said to be the “earliest Passion stories in the world”. The performances were given in cooperation with Turku and Kaarina Parish Union and they were a part of the Reformation anniversary celebration programme. All performances were conducted by Jonas Rannila.
The Passions were performed in Turku Cathedral on 11 March, 8 April and 20 May.
Each performance was preceded by an open lecture on themes related to the Reformation.
Two more Passions to celebrate the Reformation anniversary
In July 2017, Musicians of the King’s Road performed an early St John Passion written by Christoph Demantius, and in the beginning of 2018, a historical St Matthew Passion by Bartholomäus Gesius. For the Gesius Passion, that was earlier thought to be partly lost, this was the first performance in Finland.
The anniversary programme continues
The cycle of historical Passion settings was continued in 2024, when Musicians of the King’s Road performed Johann Steuerlein’s St John Passion, followed the next year by Jakob Meiland’s St Mark Passion, an ultra rare work. Both Passions were performed in Finland for the first time, under the direction of Jorma Hannikainen, Doctor of Music and specialist in Gregorian chant and liturgical vocal music.
In 2023, 500 years had passed since the publication of the first Protestant hymnbook. Musicians of the King’s Road performed all of the hymns from the hymnbook at Turku Cathedral and at Teljä Church in Pori. Both performances were conducted by Jorma Hannikainen. The hymnbook project likewise formed part of the programme initiated by Musicians of the King’s Road in 2017.
Four Passions during Holy Week at Easter 2026
During Holy Week, the week before Easter, Musicians of the King’s Road performed four early Passions set to the texts of all four evangelists. This was presumably the first time — at least in modern times — that a similar project was carried out in Finland.
The performance of the four Passions continued the cycle of early Passions that Musicians of the King’s Road initiated already in 2013, and during which rarely heard Passions by mainly first- and second-generation Reformation composers have been performed.
At Easter 2026, the following works were performed: St Matthew Passion by Paulus Bucaenus, St Mark Passion by Samuel Besler, St Luke Passion by Heinrich Schütz and St John Passion by Leonhard Lechner. All Passions were performed in a liturgical context, and they were conducted by Doctor of Music Jorma Hannikainen.
Agricola medal awarded to Musicians of the King’s Road
On 20 May 2017, Musicians of the King’s Road was awarded the Mikael Agricola 2007 Jubilee medal by the Mikael Agricola Society. The award was handed over by Mr Ossi Tuusvuori, secretary general of the Agricola Jubilee Year and permanent adviser of the Mikael Agricola Society.
In 2013, Musicians of the King’s Road initiated a cycle of historical Passion settings by performing the St Matthew Passion written by Melchior Vulpius, the first ever St Matthew Passion known to have been performed in Finland (in Turku Cathedral at the end of the 17th century). The passion was sung in old Finnish. The cycle continued in 2017, the year of the Reformation anniversary, when Musicians of the King’s Road performed “the three earliest St Matthew Passions of the world”. The last one to be performed was the earliest version of the Lutheran passion story, written by Johann Walter, a follower and close collaborator of the reformer Martin Luther. Present at this performance was also Mr Christian Priesmeier, a descendant of Martin Luther.
The Agricola Jubilee Year was celebrated in 2007, when 450 years had passed since the death of Mikael Agricola, often called the “father of literary Finnish”.
