Eva Ollikainen Explained

Eva Ollikainen
Birth Date:12 February 1982
Occupation:Conductor
Organization:Iceland Symphony Orchestra, Reykjavík
Orchestra della Toscana, Florence
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Eva Ollikainen (born 12 February 1982, Espoo) is a Finnish conductor.

In 2019, Ollikainen was appointed chief conductor and artistic director of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, in a four-year contract to commence with the 2021 season.[1]

Early life and education

Ollikainen began piano studies at the age of 3,[2] and also learned the violin and French horn. She started conducting studies at the age of 12.[3] She attended the Sibelius Academy from 1994 to 2002 and graduated in 2002 with a Master of Music degree in piano. She studied conducting with Jorma Panula and Leif Segerstam. Ollikainen has been a member of the Finnish contemporary ensemble Uusinta, and has premiered several works by Finnish composers.

Career

In 2003, Ollikainen won the second Jorma Panula Conductors' Competition. She first guest-conducted the Iceland Symphony Orchestra in 2005.[4] In the summer of 2006, she was a Tanglewood Music Center conducting fellow, the only fellow that year who already had agency representation.[3] She returned as guest conductor with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra on three occasions between 2007 and 2010, and once again in February 2019.[4] [1]

In June 2017, Sweden's Nordic Chamber Orchestra (Nordiska Kammarorkestern) announced the appointment of Ollikainen as its next chief conductor, effective for the 2018-2019 season, with an initial contract of three seasons.[5] This appointment marked Ollikainen's first chief conductorship, and she is the first female conductor to be named to this post.[6]

In June 2019, the Iceland Symphony Orchestra announced the appointment of Ollikainen as its next chief conductor and artistic advisor, effective for the 2020-2021 season, with an initial contract through 2024.[7] According to the contract, she was involved in at least four weeks during the season at the Harpa Concert Hall, and involved with international tours.[1] Ollikainen was the first female conductor to be named ISO chief conductor. In November 2019, Orchestra della Toscana in Florence also announced the appointment of Ollikainen as its next principal conductor, the first female conductor to be named to the post, effective for the 2020-2021 season.[8]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Harriet Cochrane . Eva Ollikainen appointed Iceland Symphony Orchestra’s Chief Conductor and Artistic Director . Gramophone. June 18, 2019 .
  2. News: Eva Ollikainen håller i taktpinnen . Dagens Nyheter . Marcus Boldemann . 2017-08-18 . 2017-12-01.
  3. News: She's conducting herself with aplomb . Boston Globe . Geoff Edgers . 2006-07-03 . 2009-09-03.
  4. Eva Ollikainen ráðin aðalhljómsveitarstjóri Sinfóníuhljómsveitar Íslands: Tekur við stöðunni í upphafi starfsársins 2020/21 . Iceland Symphony Orchestra . 12 June 2019 . 2019-06-14.
  5. News: Ny chefdirigent i Nordiska Kammarorkestern . SVT Nyheter . Anna Beijron . 2017-06-13 . 2017-12-01.
  6. News: Eva Ollikainen blir första kvinnliga chefdirigenten för Nordiska Kammarorkestern . Sundsvalls Tinding . Susanne Holmlund . 2017-06-14 . 2017-12-01.
  7. News: Eva Ollikainen ráðin aðalhljómsveitarstjóri . Fréttablaðið . Valgerður Árnadóttir . 2019-06-12 . 2019-06-14.
  8. Web site: Eva Ollikainen . Orchestra della Toscana . 18 October 2023.