Viola player Vuokko Lahtinen has a Master of Music degree from the Sibelius Academy. In autumn 2024, she began her master’s studies in orchestral conducting in Sakari Oramo’s conducting class.
Previous studies include the University of the Arts in Berlin and the National Conservatory of Paris. During her studies she has worked with the Helsinki, Kuopio, Joensuu, Mikkeli and Lappeenranta city orchestras. In autumn 2024, she was appointed Principal Conductor of the Polytekniki Orchestra.
Chamber music has brought Lahtinen all over the world, from Svalbard to the Loire Valley in France, from the peaks of Luosto to the Kumaus-festival in Lappeenranta. She has also performed contemporary music with, among others, the Avanti! Chamber Orchestra and NYKY Ensemble.
Lahtinen has gained orchestral experience from the Berlin Philharmonic, the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan Academy Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Helsinki Philharmonic, Finnish National Opera orchestra, and the Avanti! Chamber Orchestra. She has also worked as a principal player in the Finnish National Opera orchestra and Turku Philharmonic Orchestra.
Multidisciplinary work is very important to Lahtinen. In the spring of 2023, she participated in a performance which combined theatre, Ukrainian contemporary music, and sonic arts in the Helsinki Music Centre in collaboration with Ukrainian Children’s Theater Kalambur, as well as organizing an orchestral concert for the Red Cross and Helsinki MIssion.