Olli Mustonen

Olli Mustonen has established himself as one of the most exciting pianists of our time. Born in Helsinki, he began his studies in piano, harpsichord and composition at the age of five. His first piano teacher was Ralf Gothóni and he subsequently studied piano with Eero Heinonen and composition with Einojuhani Ratavaara. Mustonen has performed with many of the world’s leading orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, London Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Philharmonic Orchestra, New York Philharmonic and the Royal Concertgebouw; and with conductors including Ashkenazy, Barenboim, Berglund, Boulez, Chung, Dutoit, Eschenbach, Harnoncourt, Masur, Salonen, Saraste, Tennstedt, and Vegh. In recital, he frequently plays in the world’s music capitals including London, Vienna, Paris, Tokyo and Berlin, appears at leading festivals such as Ravinia and the Hollywood Bowl, and enjoys significant chamber collaborations with partners including Steven Isserlis, Pekka Kuusisto and Joshua Bell. As a conductor, Mustonen has appeared at various venues in Europe and works regularly with major Finnish symphony orchestras. He is also the founding artistic director of the Helsinki Orchestra (2001). In 2003, Olli Mustonen was named conductor of the Tapiola Sinfonietta, and from 2006–2009 he was its artist-in-association. Olli Mustonen is known, too, as a composer; a CD featuring his works was released in 2001 by Ondine to critical acclaim. Olli Mustonen’s recording catalogue is typically broad-ranging and distinctive. He has a long-term collaboration with Ondine as a pianist and conductor, which includes the recording of all Beethoven Piano Concertos with the Tapiola Sinfonietta.