Santtu-Matias Rouvali

In autumn 2024, Santtu led us through our Nordic Soundscapes series, exploring the relationship between music and nature in the Nordic countries. He conducted three concerts featuring the music of Sibelius, Grieg and Nielsen, alongside contemporary Nordic composers María Sigfúsdóttir, Miho Hazama and Mats Larsson Gothe.  

Over the rest of the season you can hear him with soloists including saxophonist Jess Gillam, pianist Nobuyuki Tsujii and violinist Arabella Steinbacher, in music from Mendelssohn to Bartók. In April he conducts Shostakovich’s first and final symphonies, marking the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death. And in June, he’s joined by pianist Nikolai Lugansky and a huge orchestra to close our 2024/25 season with barnstorming Rachmaninov and Respighi.  

In the summer of 2024, Santtu invited Andrew Mellor, freelance journalist and consultant for our Nordic Soundscapes series, to his home in Finland. Here, they went fishing and discussed Santtu’s deep connection with the natural world. Watch the film here.