Laura Hynninen

Harp

Harpist, composer and visual artist Laura Hynninen has performed as a soloist and chamber musician since the 90’s. She studied the harp in Sibelius Academy with Riitta Paavola and Willy Postma. Laura Hynninen had permanent positions as a principal harpist in Finnish National Opera (2000-2013) and Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (2013-2015) before switching over as a free lancer. Laura Hynninen is also the artistic director of Sysmän Suvisoitto music festival, and is known for her versatile work over different genres.

In her solo projects Laura Hynninen combines her own music and visual art in a unique way. She has been awarded several times, f.e. Yle’s Record of the Year 2021, Emma music award nomination 2022 and 2024, L.I.E.D. composing competition special prize 2024, Pro Musica award 2024, and Indie Awards prize 2025.

Photo: Ville Hautakangas

Sami Junnonen

Flute

Sami Junnonen enjoys a varied and successful career as an internationally acclaimed flutist. His virtuosity, musicality, and comfort within a wide and diverse repertoire have led him to collaborate with a remarkable array of celebrated artists, composers, and ensembles. His 2012 debut recital at the Helsinki Music Centre in his native Finland, and his 2018 solo debut with the Houston Symphony Orchestra in Texas, USA, received outstanding reviews.

In addition to his solo career, Junnonen has served as principal flutist in several renowned orchestras, including the Iceland Symphony, the Cairo Symphony, the Hong Kong Sinfonietta, the Auckland Philharmonia in New Zealand, and the Royal Northern Sinfonia in the UK. He has taught flute and chamber music performance at the University of Auckland in New Zealand and Fordham University in New York, USA, and has conducted masterclasses around the world.

​His recording of The Complete W.A. Mozart Flute Quartets with Chamber Domaine, released by Resonus Classics, won the Audience Award in the Finnish Album of the Year 2018, promoted by the Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle). His 2024 release, Flute Concertos – Ibert, Jolivet & Rodrigo (Resonus Classics), was chosen as the Album of the Week by the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR). The Flute View, the leading American flute magazine, described the release as "a colossal album that will inspire for generations to come".

Photo: Esajuha Posti

Olga Heikkilä

Soprano

Lyric soprano Olga Heikkilä is an opera singer whose repertoire ranges from Renaissance to Contemporary Music. Heikkilä is enjoying an international career and in recent years has performed at the San Francisco Opera (2024), the Royal Opera of England (2023), the Dutch National Opera (2023), the Aix-en-Provence Opera Festival (2019) and the Berlin State Opera (2017). Heikkilä is a regular guest soloist at the Finnish National Opera and Savonlinna Opera Festival. Heikkilä has sung numerous roles in traditional opera repertoire, baroque operas as well as experimental contemporary world premieres. Her voice has inspired several Finnish composers and she has both premiered and commissioned several contemporary works. In addition, Heikkilä also composes herself.

Heikkilä is also a dedicated vocal pedagogy at the vocal music department of Sibelius Academy. She is currently completing her artistic doctorate at the DocMus Doctoral School of the Sibelius Academy studying Sprechgesang and the expressiveness of voice.

Photo: Merja Yeung

Laura Mikkola

Artistic Director, Piano

Pianist Laura Mikkola founded the Iitti Music Festival in 2003 and has been the festival's Artistic Director ever since.

Mikkola, who lives in Paris, performs extensively in Europe and beyond. She is particularly known as a profound connoisseur and interpreter of Eino-Juhani Rautavaara. She has recorded all of Rautavaara's piano concertos and solo piano works, as well as works composed for solo piano by Einar Englund.

Having won numerous piano competitions at the age of under 20, Mikkola has worked with the most renowned conductors, such as Esa-Pekka Salonen, Hannu Linnu, Leif Segerstam, Paavo Järvi, Vladimir Ashkenazy and Ahmed El-Saed. In 2024, Laura Mikkola was elected a Steinway Artist in Hamburg, Germany. The title is given to the best pianists of their era.

Photo: Heikki Tuuli