The Oslo Philharmonic celebrates its final season with Chief Conductor Klaus Mäkelä

Following a whirlwind first encounter in May 2018, the Oslo Philharmonic offered Klaus Mäkelä the position of Chief Conductor – his first major position with an international orchestra. He started in September 2020 and since then the orchestra and Mäkelä have built up an artistic partnership which has resulted in critically acclaimed concerts, international tours and award-winning recordings.

During this time, Mäkelä has become increasingly in demand and is now preparing new collaborations with two of the world's leading orchestras. The Oslo Philharmonic looks forward to building on its strong international reputation and to developing new initiatives aimed at bringing classical music ever closer to the heart of the community. With exciting new projects in store for both the Oslo Philharmonic and Klaus Mäkelä, the time has come to go their separate ways and build on the solid foundation they have created.

“The magic between Klaus and the orchestra was evident from the very beginning. We are like one big family, and the years we have spent together have been an incredible journey, reaching milestones that will remain important chapters in the orchestra’s history. We are very fond of Klaus, and it fills us with pride to see him embark on his new musical chapter”, says Knut Skansen, CEO of the Oslo Philharmonic.

“I am really grateful to the Oslo Philharmonic for the beautiful time together and the trust the orchestra has shown me since day one, which required a lot of courage. We have grown together and accomplished so much in the last five years, exploring a wealth of repertoire ranging from Lully to Andrew Norman. I look forward to celebrating our sixth and final season with both new musical adventures and works which have become 'old friends' during our time together. Oslo will always have a special place in my heart," adds Klaus Mäkelä.

Already in their first two seasons together, the relationship between the musicians of the Oslo Philharmonic and Klaus Mäkelä quickly flourished, resulting in highly successful concerts and tours to the leading festivals and halls across Europe and Asia. Particularly memorable were the 2021/22 residencies at the Vienna Konzerthaus and Hamburg Elbphilharmonie, with performances of the complete Sibelius symphony cycle, which they also recorded for Decca Classics. Accolade for this first recording project resulted in the prestigious Sibelius Prize and won both an Edison Klassik and Classica Award.

In subsequent seasons, Mäkelä and the Oslo Philharmonic have performed at the world's leading summer festivals, including Salzburg, Lucerne, the BBC Proms and the Berlin Musikfest. They have recorded three releases for Decca Classics – the complete Sibelius Symphony cycle, Prokofiev and Sibelius violin concertos with Janine Jansen and Shostakovich's Symphonies Nos. 4, 5 and 6.

The 25/26 season opens on 28 August with Mahler’s Symphony No. 7 and closes on 21 May with Magnus Lindberg’s 1985 tour de force, Kraft. Additional highlights include a January tour and residencies in Hamburg, Vienna, Paris and Essen with performances of Shostakovich Symphony No. 8, Sibelius’ Lemminkäinen Suite and both the Tchaikovsky and Sibelius violin concertos, with soloist Lisa Batiashvili.