Klaus Mäkelä (; born 17 January 1996) is a Finnish conductor and cellist. He is the chief conductor of the

Oslo Philharmonic The Oslo Philharmonic () is a Norwegian symphony orchestra based in Oslo, Norway. The orchestra traces its roots to the Philharmonic Society founded in 1847 and the Christiania Musical Association co-founded by Edvard Grieg in 1871, and was esta ...

, and music director of the

Orchestre de Paris The Orchestre de Paris () is a French orchestra based in Paris. The orchestra currently performs most of its concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris. History In 1967, following the dissolution of the Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du ...

. Mäkelä is also artistic partner and chief conductor-designate of the

Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra The Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra (, ) is a Dutch symphony orchestra, established in 1888 at the Amsterdam Royal Concertgebouw (concert hall). It is considered one of the world's leading orchestras. It was known as the Concertgebouw Orchestra u ...

, and music director-designate of the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891, the ensemble has been based in the Symphony Center since 1904 and plays a summer season at the Ravinia F ...

Biography

Mäkelä was born in Helsinki into a family of musicians; his father is the cellist Sami Mäkelä, and his mother is the pianist Taru Myöhänen-Mäkelä. His grandfather, Tapio Myöhänen, is a violinist and violist. His younger sister, Ellen Mäkelä, is a dancer with the Ballets de Catalunya. Mäkelä studied conducting at the

Sibelius Academy The Sibelius Academy (, ) is part of the University of the Arts Helsinki and a university-level music school which operates in Helsinki and Kuopio, Finland. It also has an adult education centre in Järvenpää and a training centre in Seinäjoki ...

with

Jorma Panula Jorma Juhani Panula (born 10 August 1930) is a Finnish conductor, composer, and teacher of conducting. He has mentored many Finnish conductors, such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, Mikko Franck, Sakari Oramo, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Osmo Vänskä, Klaus ...

and cello with Marko Ylönen, Timo Hanhinen and Hannu Kiiski. He became interested in conducting at age 12, when he sang in the choir of the

Finnish National Opera The Finnish National Opera and Ballet (; ) is a Finnish opera company and ballet company based in Helsinki. It is headquartered in the Opera House on the coast of the Töölönlahti bay in Töölö, which opened in 1993, and is state-owned throu ...

. Mäkelä has been a soloist with Finnish orchestras such as the

Lahti Symphony Orchestra The Lahti Symphony Orchestra (''Sinfonia Lahti'') is a Finland, Finnish orchestra, based in the city of Lahti. The orchestra is resident at the Sibelius Hall. The orchestra was founded in 1910, and placed under the control of the Lahti municipali ...

, the Kuopio Symphony Orchestra and the

Jyväskylä Sinfonia Jyväskylä Sinfonia is an orchestra in Finland. Its current music director is Ville Matvejeff. Jyväskylä Sinfonia was the first to record Einojuhani Rautavaara's ''Aleksis Kivi''. Their first recording for Naxos Records was the first-five numbe ...

. He has performed at Finnish music festivals such as the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival and the Naantali Music Festival. In September 2017, Mäkelä first guest-conducted the

Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra The Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra () is a Swedish radio orchestra based in Stockholm, affiliated with Sveriges Radio (Sweden's Radio). Its principal performing venue is the Berwaldhallen (Berwald Hall). The orchestra broadcasts concerts on th ...

. On the basis of this appearance, in December 2017, the orchestra announced the appointment of Mäkelä as its next principal guest conductor, effective with the 2018–2019 season, with a contract of three years. Mäkelä was the youngest-ever appointment to a titled conductor post with the orchestra. Mäkelä was the artistic director of the

Turku Music Festival Turku Music Festival (, ) is the oldest continuously operating music festival in Finland. The festival was founded in 1960 by the Musical Society in Turku. The city festival offers audiences' big orchestral concerts, chamber music concerts, recita ...

from 2018 to 2024. In May 2018, Mäkelä first guest-conducted the

. On the basis of this appearance, in October 2018, the orchestra announced the appointment of Mäkelä as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2020–2021 season, with an initial contract of 3 seasons. This appointment marks the first chief conductorship for Mäkelä. In May 2020, the orchestra announced an extension of Mäkelä's initial contract with the Oslo Philharmonic for an additional four seasons, unusual in its timing before the official start of his tenure with the orchestra. He is scheduled to conclude his Oslo Philharmonic tenure at the close of the 2026–2027 season. In June 2019, Mäkelä first guest-conducted the

. In June 2020, the Orchestre de Paris announced the appointment of Mäkelä as its next music director, effective with the 2022–2023 season, with an initial contract of five seasons. The original intention had been for Mäkelä to hold the post of musical advisor for the two prior seasons, from 2020 to 2022. However, Mäkelä assumed the role of music director in September 2021, one year earlier than originally planned. He is scheduled to stand down from the Orchestre de Paris at the close of the 2026–2027 season. In September 2020, Mäkelä first guest-conducted the

. Following several additional guest-conducting appearances, in June 2022, the RCO announced the appointment of Mäkelä as an artistic partner for the period of 2022–2027, and subsequently as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2027–2028 season, with an initial contract of five years. In 2022, Mäkelä first guest-conducted the

(CSO), and returned for a guest-conducting appearance in February 2023. In April 2024, the CSO announced the appointment of Mäkelä as its next music director, effective with the 2027–2028 season, with an initial contract of five years. Mäkelä has an exclusive recording contract with

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, record label * Decca Gold, classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, musical theater record label * Decca Studios, recording facility in West ...

, only the third conductor in Decca's history with an exclusive recording contract. His first recording for Decca was a set of the complete Sibelius symphonies with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. He has subsequently conducted two recordings with the

, with music of Stravinsky and of Debussy. In June 2024, Mäkelä was named "Conductor of the Year" at the 2024 OPUS Klassik Awards for his 2023 recording with the Orchestre de Paris of

Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of ...

's ''

The Rite of Spring ''The Rite of Spring'' () is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1913 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes company; the original choreography was by Vaslav Nijinsky ...

'' and ''

The Firebird ''The Firebird'' (; ) is a ballet and orchestral concert work by the Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. It was written for the 1910 Paris season of Sergei Diaghilev's Ballets Russes company; the original choreography was by Michel Fokine, who c ...

''.

Discography

Sibelius Jean Sibelius (; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often ...

: Complete Symphonies (Symphonies 1–7); ''Tapiola''; '3 Late Fragments' (with the Oslo Philharmonic) (2022,

Decca Classics Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

) *

: ''The Rite of Spring'', ''The Firebird'' (with the Orchestre de Paris) (2023, Decca Classics) * Stravinsky: ''Petrushka'';

Debussy Achille Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most influe ...

: ''Jeux'', ''Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune'' (with the Orchestre de Paris) (2024, Decca Classics) * Sibelius,

Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

: Violin Concertos, with

Janine Jansen Janine Jansen (born ) is a Dutch violinist and violist. Early life and education Jansen was born in Soest in the Netherlands into a musical family. Her father plays organ, harpsichord and piano; from 1987 to mid-2011 he was the organist of ...

and the Oslo Philharmonic (2024, Decca Classics) *

Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and thereafter was regarded ...

: Symphonies 4, 5 & 6 (with the Oslo Philharmonic) (2024, Decca Classics)

References

External links

*
Harrison Parrott agency page on Klaus Mäkelä
{{DEFAULTSORT:Makela, Klaus 1996 births Living people Sibelius Academy alumni Finnish classical cellists 21st-century Finnish conductors (music) 21st-century cellists Musicians from Helsinki Pupils of Jorma Panula Music directors of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Music directors of the Oslo Philharmonic Music directors of the Orchestre de Paris