Jaakko Kuusisto

The violinist, conductor and composer Jaakko Kuusisto (b.1974) studied the violin at the Sibelius Academy and at Indiana University. He won the Kuopio Violin Competition in 1989 and has won top prizes in the Sibelius, Indianapolis and Carl Nielsen competitions. In 1997 he reached the finals in the Queen Elisabeth competition in Brussels. Appearances as soloist and chamber musician have taken him to China, Japan, the USA and many European countries, for instance with the Minnesota Orchestra and the Lahti Symphony Orchestra. Among the orchestras he has conducted are the BBC Concert Orchestra, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Tapiola Sinfonietta and Lahti Symphony Orchestra. His complete recordings for BIS of Sibelius’s early violin works and piano trios have been very well received. Jaakko Kuusisto was appointed leader of the Lahti Symphony Orchestra in 1999. He has a special interest in jazz and has also studied composition. His works have been performed widely and The Canine Kalevala, his second opera, was a massive success at the 2004 Savonlinna Opera Festival. Together with his brother Pekka, he is artistic director of the Tuusula Lake Chamber Music Festival.