News
10.7.2023
Kristian Saarinen will start as the General Manager
Bachelor of Music, Kristian Saarinen, will start as the General Manager of the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra on August 1, 2023. Previously, he worked as a project planner for tourism at Helsinki Cathedral Parish. Additionally, Saarinen has experience as a producer and entrepreneur in the field of classical music.
“Our former General Manager, Mikko Missi, has already transitioned to new roles within the music industry. I would like to express my gratitude to Mikko for his excellent work for HeBO,” says Kirsi Hokka, Chair of the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra’s board.”
25.4.2023
Tickets for next season’s Early Music Series now available
The upcoming season of Helsinki Baroque Orchestra’s Early Music Series in the Helsinki Musiikkitalo will see great vocal works of the Baroque era from both France and Italy. The season kicks off with a tour production of Jean-Philippe Rameau’s Les Boréades, as the Purcell Choir and Orfeo Orchestra from Hungary bring a concertante version of this opera to the Finnish audience for the very first time. Meanwhile the Christmas concert will feature the masterpiece Caduta di Adamo by the Venetian Baldassare Galuppi (1706–1785).
Violinist Cecilia Bernardini makes a long-awaited return to HeBo with a full romantic repertoire. Pauliina Fred and Aapo Häkkinen’s duo concert brings beautiful chamber music to the shortening days of October.
Tickets available from Ticketmaster.
17.1.2023
Concert performance of Pergolesi’s Lo Frate ‘nnamorato for the first time in Finland
Helsinki Baroque Orchestra performs Giovanni Battista Pergolesi‘s (1710-1736) opera Lo Frate ‘nnamorato (1732) as a concert performance. The comic opera composed to Gennario Antonio Federico’s libretto written in the Neapolitan dialect, is one of the most important works of Neapolitan opera.
During his short life, Pergolesi managed to leave his name permanently in the history of Western art music. He was a central figure in the birth of Neapolitan opera – a phenomenon that in the 18th century had a wide influence on the art of opera throughout Europe. Pergolesi’s influence on later composers from Mozart to Stravinsky was notable.
The work has a particularly strong relationship with the culture of the Naples region in terms of subject matter, language and music. Conductor Marcos Magalhães: “Music plays a significant role in Neapolitan life, but at the center of the cultural richness is the Neapolitan dialect, which I consider one of the most musical languages in itself. It seems as if the phrasing and pronunciation of that speech is already melodic and rhythmic like the music itself. So it’s not surprising that Naples and its surroundings have always had not only a diverse and profound folk culture tradition but also a sophisticated and impressive art music tradition, specifically in the field of opera and especially in the 18th century.”
The concert continues the well-established cooperation between Helsinki Baroque Orchestra and Os Músicos do Tejo, and is made possible by financial support from Dgartes, Câmara Municipal de Lisboa and the Government of Portugal.
2.9.2022
Helsinki Baroque Orchestra 25 Years
The upcoming concert season marks the 25th anniversary of Helsinki Baroque Orchestra. Highlights of the season include an anniversary concert featuring music from Bernhard Crusell, as well as a touring opera production of Schubert’s Alfonso und Estrella. Read more about these and other concerts here.
31.3.2022
Pasticcio Passion in Tallinn and Helsinki
Graun/Bach: Passions-Oratorium, sometimes referred to as “the fifth passion”, was performed by the Purcell Choir and Helsinki Baroque Orchestra in Budapest last year. Now it is coming to Tallinn (Estonia Kontserdisaal, April 9) and Helsinki (Musiikkitalo, April 10).
The production brings together Helsinki Baroque Orchestra and the Purcell Choir Budapest, one of the foremost choirs in Europe. The soloists are Ágnes Kovács, Eszter Balogh, Zoltán Megyesi and Lóránt Najbauer, with Aapo Häkkinen conducting.
23.12.2021
New Year’s concerts cancelled
The Regional State Administrative Agency for Southern Finland has today given an order that closes public indoor spaces and forbids events from 28 Dec – 17 Jan. Helsinki Baroque Orchestra’s traditional New Year’s concerts in Musiikkitalo on 31 Dec and 1 Jan have therefore been cancelled.
3.12.2021
EU COVID Certificate required for concerts in Finland
EU Covid Certificate will be required for Helsinki Baroque Orchestra’s upcoming concerts in Rauma and Helsinki. Covid passports will be inspected upon entering the concert venue. Children under the age of 16 are exempt from this requirement.
26.9.2021
Tickets for New Year’s concerts now available
Joseph Haydn’s opera L’isola disabitata (The Desert Island) will be performed in Helsinki Baroque Orchestra’s traditional New Year’s concert in Musiikkitalo on Dec 31 & Jan 1. The soloists include Giuseppina Bridelli, Kajsa Dahlbäck, Hugo Hymas and Arttu Kataja, with Aapo Häkkinen conducting.
Tickets are now available from Ticketmaster service points and website.
1.9.2021
Aapo Häkkinen’s recital re-scheduled
The opening concert of the Early Music Series in Musiikkitalo has been re-scheduled. The new date for Aapo Häkkinen’s Bach, Haydn, Hässler recital is Saturday, September 25 at 19:00.
All tickets purchased for the original concert are valid on the new date and no action is required. In case you wish to cancel your ticket, follow the instructions set out by Ticketmaster. Season ticket holders may receive a refund for the corresponding amount.
5.7.2021
Helsinki Baroque Orchestra is performing internationally again
Concert activity is edging towards normal. After playing the Janakkala Baroque Festival successfully with a live audience, the orchestra will be heading to Hungary next to perform at the Vác Days of Early Music, followed by Póvoa de Varzim Music Festival in Portugal.