Joseph Haydn begins the creation of the universe by describing the primordial chaos. The universe is created in an hour and a half accompanied by the heavenly arias of the archangels. On the first day in paradise, Adam and Eve sing a love duet to the rhythm of a folk dance. Haydn's Creation has been an audience favourite since its premiere and is still one of the most performed oratorios.
Johanna Isokoski (born 1990) is a Finnish soprano. She graduated from the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki in 2022 with Vocal Arts as her main subject, and also holds a Bachelor’s degree in music pedagogy. Isokoski has been recognised in national singing competitions, and in 2019, she was named “Young Musician of the Year” by the Pro Musica Foundation in Finland.
Isokoski has performed as a soloist at the Finnish National Opera, Åbo Svenska Teater, and the Vaasa City Theatre, and has appeared with numerous Finnish orchestras.
Austrian-English soprano Anna Prohaska (born 1983) joined the ensemble of the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in Berlin at the age of 23. Since then, her career has taken her to many of the world’s greatest opera houses and orchestras. On the concert stage, Prohaska has performed with the Berliner Philharmoniker and conductors such as Rattle, Harding, and Abbado. She has also appeared with the Vienna Philharmonic, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, among others.
Tenor Maximilian Schmitt (born 1977) discovered his love for music through his native city’s renowned boys’ choir, the Regensburger Domspatzen, in Germany. He completed his vocal studies with Professor Anke Eggers at the Berlin University of the Arts.
Schmitt is a regular guest on major international concert and opera stages. He has performed at La Scala in Milan, the Vienna State Opera, and with the Cleveland Orchestra, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, and the Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra, among others.
Veikko Vallinoja (born 1995) is a Finnish baritone. He began his vocal studies with the Cantores Minores boys’ choir in Helsinki and at the Helsinki Conservatory, and is currently studying at the Sibelius Academy of the Uniarts Helsinki.
Vallinoja has been recognised in national singing competitions in Finland and, together with his duo partner, pianist Jussi Littunen, placed fourth at the Copenhagen Lied-Duo Competition. The duo also reached the finals of the Helsinki Lied Competition.
Michael Nagy (born 1976) is a German-born baritone of Hungarian descent. He began his musical career with the Stuttgart Hymnus Boys’ Choir and studied singing, Lieder interpretation, and conducting in Mannheim and Saarbrücken.
Nagy has been an ensemble member of the Komische Oper Berlin and the Frankfurt Opera. He regularly appears worldwide on prominent opera stages and, as a concert singer, performs with the most renowned international orchestras. He is also recognised as an accomplished Lieder singer.
The Helsinki Music Centre Choir (Musiikkitalon kuoro) is a symphonic choir of around 130 singers that can, when needed, reconfigure as a male or female ensemble. Founded in 2011 on the initiative of conductors Hannu Lintu, Jukka-Pekka Saraste and John Storgårds, the choir collaborates with all the resident organisations at the Helsinki Music Centre, or Musiikkitalo: the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the University of the Arts Helsinki's Sibelius Academy. Artistic Director of the choir since 2017 has been Nils Schweckendiek, professor of choral conducting at the Sibelius Academy. The singers are passionate choral enthusiasts.
The repertoire, planned in close collaboration with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra and the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, is developed with long-term planning in mind and primarily consists of symphonic choral and orchestral works. A cappella works for large choirs are also performed. Most of the choir’s concerts take place at Musiikkitalo in Helsinki.
The Helsinki Music Centre Choir is recruiting additional singers.
For details of auditions, please visit www.musiikkitalonkuoro.fi.
Thomas Hengelbrock (born 1958) is a German conductor and violinist. He is Music Director of the Orchestre de chambre de Paris in France from the 2024–2025 season. From 2011 to 2018, he was Chief Conductor of the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra in Hamburg, Germany.
Hengelbrock is the founder and Artistic Director of the Balthasar Neumann Choir (1991–) and Orchestra (1995–). His ensembles are internationally acclaimed and awarded for their repertoire, recordings, and carefully planned dramaturgical concert programmes, including Haydn’s The Creation. The ensembles feature works extending from the early Baroque to modern music, with an emphasis on the 17th and 18th centuries.
With the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, the house choir and guest soloists, Hengelbrock conducts The Creation. In an interview with the online magazine Bachtrack, he said: ”When I see any new choir for the first time (it’s the same for any new orchestra), they provide me as a conductor with their unique sound, and that’s what I work with. It is an important part of mutual respect that we allow each other into our worlds!”
| Violin 1 Jan Söderblom Kreeta-Julia Heikkilä Katariina Jämsä Ilkka Lehtonen Petri Päivärinne Kalinka Pirinen Elina Viitasaari Pauline Fleming-Unelius Tuomas Ikonen Leena Jaakkola Tuuli Talvitie Violin 2 Eva Ballaz Heini Eklund Matilda Haavisto Anna-Maria Huohvanainen Terhi Ignatius Harry Rayner Virpi Taskila Annemarie Åström Jasmin Mönkkönen Viola Atte Kilpeläinen Torsten Tiebout Kaarina Ikonen Tiila Kangas Carmen Moggach Mariette Reefman Markus Sallinen Hajnalka Standi-Pulakka Cello Beata Antikainen Jaani Helander Inkeri Rajamäki Ilmo Saaristo Tommi Wesslund Johannes Välja Bass Tuomo Matero Venla Lahti Josh Lambert Miranda Erlich | Flute Niamh McKenna Jenny Villanen Alexis Roman Oboe Nils Rõõmussaar Francisco Almazán Clarinet Anna-Maija Korsimaa Maura Marinucci Bassoon Markus Tuukkanen Mikko-Pekka Svala Vertti Tapanainen Horn Satu Huuskonen Jonathan Nikkinen Trumpet Thomas Bugnot Michael Olsen Trombone Teppo Alestalo Francisco Couto Ricardo Pedrares Patiño Keyboard Tuija Hakkila |
Yes, but only before or after the concert. During the concert we just want you to enjoy the music. This way you won’t disturb the musicians or other audience members.
Only the orchestra has a dress code. You can dress as you like.
You can give the ticket to a friend or donate it to a music student by calling 09-3102 2700 or sending an e-mail to helsinki.philharmonic@hel.fi by 3pm on the day of the concert.
