Pianist, conductor, composer Olli Mustonen will be the main guest of the Lapland Chamber Orchestra for the next two years. There will be concert ensembles in autumn and spring.
– My father and I went on a birding trip. We came to Rovaniemi by night train and rode an old bubble volkar to Karigasniemi.
The 10-year-old boy Olli hiked with his father for a week in the terrains of the Ailigas fell and they also visited the Norwegian side, the Arctic Ocean.
– That trip has left an eternal memory. It was so great, Olli Mustonen recalls his first trip to Lapland.
The call has been played all over the world – and in Lapland
Almost fifty years later, Mustonen is in Lapland as an award-winning pianist, conductor and composer who has toured the world. In recent seasons, Mustonen has appeared in e.g. As a soloist with the London Symphony Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic. As a conductor, in recent years he has cooperated with, for example, numerous European orchestras.
Lately, large-scale chamber music pieces have been central to Mustonen’s compositional work.
Called a musical prodigy in the 1970s, Mustonen has later been awarded in various contexts, such as the Finnish Ministry of Culture’s Finland Award and he was awarded the Pro Finlandia medal of the Order of the Finnish Lion in 2003.
In Rovaniemi, Olli Mustonen has performed for the first time with the Rovaniemi City Orchestra.
The cooperation has continued with the Chamber Orchestra of Lapland and Mustonen has watched with satisfaction the development of the orchestra and Rovaniemi as a music city.
After getting up to speed, Mustonen doesn’t spare his praise.
– This hall is absolutely magnificent, once and for all. I believe that this will be a joy for Laplanders for a long time.
In addition to Rovaniemi, the rest of Lapland has become familiar over the years. Olli Mustonen has toured playing all over Lapland.
– I have also played some solo concerts. I especially remember twenty years ago. It was the end of August, it was exceptionally warm and extremely lush. I called e.g. Särestö, Heta and Ivalo. It was a tour to remember.
A longer visit to Lapland
Olli Mustonen is happy that the relationship has now been formalized with the Lapland Chamber Orchestra for the next two years.
– Now it’s wonderful when we and the Lapland Chamber Orchestra have a little, how would you say it, established a relationship in such a way that we now have a little more regular cooperation a couple of times a year.
This time, Mustonen’s music will be played in Korundi and also in Kuusamo, where, according to Mustonen, there is also an excellent hall.
Pianist, conductor, composer Olli Mustonen will be the main guest of the Lapland Chamber Orchestra for the next two years, but the contract also has an option for an additional year. Olli Mustonen’s concert series will be held every autumn and spring. The whole includes orchestral concerts and a solo concert.
*Listen to Olli Mustonen’s interview and a taste of the man’s playing skills. Editor is Juha Mäntykentät.*