Artistic Leadership Team begins

In 2023 The Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra renewed its artistic leadership model. The orchestra will have a three-member Artistic Leadership Team, which will comprise Chief Conductor and Artistic Director Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Principal Guest Conductor and Artistic Co-director Pekka Kuusisto and Composer-in-Residence which will change annually, and in addition to performing orchestral pieces as commissioned, they will participate in the work of the artistic leadership team and plan the programme for one concert per season. The first Composer-In-Residence was Anna Clyne, the second Samy Moussa and the third will be published in Spring 2025. 

The contracts for Saraste and Kuusisto are for three years. The Chief Conductor will conduct the HPO eight weeks a year and the Principal Guest Conductor four weeks a year. The Composer-in-Residence will change annually, and in addition to performing orchestral pieces as commissioned, they will participate in the work of the artistic leadership team and plan the programme for one concert per season.

Jukka-Pekka Saraste has a long history with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, since his debut concert with the orchestra in 1983, and he has worked together for years with upcoming Principal Guest Conductor and Artistic Co-director Pekka Kuusisto on concert stages in Finland and around the world. As members of the HPO’s new Artistic Leadership Team, the two will be working together more closely than ever.

According to Aleksi Malmberg, General Manager of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, the new artistic leadership model reflects today’s society and the importance of bringing unique voices together.