Mikkeli Music Festival

Name: Mikkeli Music Festival
Start: 2026-08-01
End: 2026-08-09
Location: Mikkeli

took place · 1 Aug 2026

Mikkeli

festival culture outdoor

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Description was written before the event

Mikkeli Music Festival is an international festival of classical symphonic orchestra music held since 1992. The programme features Finnish artists and orchestras as well as the London Philharmonia Orchestra under the direction of Santtu-Matias Rouvali, a regular guest at the festival.

About the festival: Mikkeli Music Festival

23 700

listeners in 2025 (all-time record)

5 050

tickets sold in 2025

Since 1992

years running

XXXII (32nd edition)

edition in 2026

Good to know

Runs 8 days: 1-8 August 2026
Pre-festival On the Move! concerts from early July in Mikkeli and surrounding municipalities
Main venues: Mikaeli congress & concert hall (700 seats), Mikkeli Cathedral (1,100 seats), Mikkeli Parish Church (1,500 seats)
Mikaeli is ~1 km from Mikkeli city centre; free 167-space car park on site
By train (VR) or bus (Matkahuolto) to Mikkeli; local bus line 4T connects city centre to Mikaeli
Some free admission concerts included in the programme
Tickets sold via lippu.fi; prices include VAT and service fee

What's new

2026-03
The 2026 festival programme expanded with three orchestral and three chamber concerts, adding artists including Pepe Willberg, Angelika Klas, Henrik Sandås and Philharmonia Orchestra chamber musicians.
2026-03
Philharmonia Orchestra's 2026 Finland visit - its fifth residency year at the festival - opens at Helsinki's Musiikkitalo on 5 August before moving to Mikkeli for concerts on 6-8 August.
2026-03
The 2026 edition's theme is freedom, with works tied to the liberation of peoples and composers, including a Finnish premiere of Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero's piano concerto 'Latin concerto'.
2025-08
The 2025 festival set an all-time attendance record with 5,050 tickets sold and 23,700 listeners across 12 concerts and 56 side events.

Headliners

Philharmonia Orchestra Santtu-Matias Rouvali Gabriela Montero Silja Aalto Lilja Haatainen Pepe Willberg Angelika Klas Henrik Sandås Erkki Lasonpalo Sam Taskinen Mikkelin kaupunginorkesteri

About: Santtu-Matias Rouvali

One of the most in-demand conductors of his generation, Rouvali leads the Philharmonia Orchestra in London and keeps close ties to Finland through his honorary role in Tampere. His award-winning Sibelius symphony cycle with Alpha Classics and a growing catalogue on Philharmonia Records have cemented his reputation internationally.

Principal Conductor of Philharmonia Orchestra - only the 6th in the orchestra's history since 1945

2028

Philharmonia Orchestra contract confirmed until at least

Major international awards for Sibelius cycle recordings (Gramophone, Diapason d'Or, German Record Critics, etc.)

What's new

2026-01
Rouvali and the Philharmonia Orchestra completed an extensive European tour with concerts in Brussels, Frankfurt, Munich and Vienna.
2025-12
Rouvali led the Philharmonia Orchestra on a tour of South Korea, joined by violinist Clara-Yumi Kang.
2025-10
Rouvali conducted the Philharmonia Orchestra on a major US tour, culminating at Carnegie Hall, as the orchestra celebrated its 80th anniversary.

Tour

BrusselsFrankfurtMunichViennaLondonTampereMikkeliHamburgBucharest

Tracks

Sibelius: Symphonies Nos. 1-7 (cycle)Recorded with Gothenburg Symphony for Alpha Classics; multiple international awards including Gramophone Editor's Choice and Diapason d'Or.

Santtu conducts StraussFirst release on Philharmonia Records (March 2023), double CD of Strauss tone poems.

Mahler: Symphony No. 2 'Resurrection'Second Philharmonia Records album, released September 2023.

Santtu conducts StravinskyThird Philharmonia Records album (March 2024), featuring The Firebird Suite and Petrushka.

Tchaikovsky: Swan LakeEarly recording with the Philharmonia on Signum Classics, released September 2020.

Recent shows

Mar 18, 2016 Hilbert Circle Theatre, Indianapolis (US)
Nov 27, 2015 Sorsapuisto, Tampere (FI)
Oct 9, 2015 Tampere-talo, Tampere (FI)

About: Philharmonia Orchestra

Founded in London in 1945, the Philharmonia has spent 80 years shaping the sound of British orchestral life - from landmark EMI recordings with Karajan and Klemperer to today's seasons at the Royal Festival Hall under Finnish principal conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali.

5M+

Monthly Spotify listeners

140K+

YouTube subscribers

54.8M

YouTube total views

Years since founding (as of 2025)

What's new

2026-04
The Philharmonia announced the first half of its 2026/27 London season, opening on 24 September 2026 with Rouvali conducting Dvořák, Brahms and Elgar with cellist Sol Gabetta.
2025-06
The orchestra unveiled its full 80th-birthday season (2025/26), including a major US tour - the first with Rouvali and Alsop together - culminating in two Carnegie Hall performances.
2025-06
As part of its 80th-birthday season, the Philharmonia launched 'Philharmonia Social', offering 80 free tickets for first-time attendees at every London concert in 2025/26.

Tour

LondonNew YorkAmsterdamViennaSeoulLeicesterBedfordGloucester

Tracks

Beethoven: Symphony Cycle (Klemperer, 1950s-60s)Landmark EMI recordings, considered among the most authoritative Beethoven interpretations on disc.

Strauss: An Alpine Symphony (Rouvali, live)Part of the orchestra's recent live recording series with Santtu-Matias Rouvali.

Philharmonia: Birth of a Legend (24-CD box set)Warner Classics 2020 release marking the orchestra's 75th anniversary with its earliest recordings.

Mahler: Symphony No. 2 'Resurrection'A signature work in the Philharmonia's repertoire, performed across multiple eras of the orchestra's history.

Stravinsky: The Rite of SpringRecorded with multiple principal conductors; a cornerstone of the orchestra's discography.

Recent shows

Aug 24, 2026 Royal Albert Hall, London (GB)
Jun 3, 2026 The Anvil, Basingstoke (GB)
May 7, 2026 Royal Festival Hall, London (GB)

Here's how it looked last time

2025

Photo: Ville Hautakangas

Photo: Laura Luostarinen

Mikkeli Music Festival

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