Antti Tikkanen is a Finnish violinist from Oulainen who trained at the Sibelius Academy and the European Chamber Music Academy (ECMA). He is best known as the first violinist of Meta4, one of Finland's most internationally successful string quartets, and has performed as soloist and orchestral leader with ensembles including the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and Jyväskylä Sinfonia. Since October 2021 he and his spouse Minna Pensola have served as co-artistic directors of the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, one of the world's leading chamber music events.
Kuhmo Chamber Music, which Tikkanen co-directs with Minna Pensola, was named Festival of the Year 2026 by the Finland Festivals organisation.
Tikkanen and Pensola chose 'Celebrations & Ceremonies' as the theme for the 2026 Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, comprising 60 ticketed concerts.
The 55th Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival took place 13-26 July 2025 under the theme 'Nordic Utopia', programmed by Tikkanen and Pensola.
In October 2021 Tikkanen and Minna Pensola were appointed co-artistic directors of Kuhmo Chamber Music, succeeding Vladimir Mendelssohn.
Meta4 released an album featuring the Brahms Clarinet Quintet and Gérard Pesson's Nebenstück with clarinettist Reto Bieri on ECM Records.
