Lapland Chamber Orchestra

Headquartered in the Finnish city of Rovaniemi, nearly on the Arctic Circle, the Chamber Orchestra of Lapland (or Lapland Chamber Orchestra -- both translations from the Finnish Lapin kamariorkesteri have been used) is the northernmost professional orchestra in the European Union. The ensemble has championed Finnish music and also contemporary music more generally, often giving the Finnish premieres of new music. The orchestra performs in Rovaniemi in its auditorium in the Korundi Culture House, tours Lapland and the rest of Scandinavia's Arctic region, Finland, and other countries throughout Europe. Its march toward international prominence began with the appointment of conductor and violinist John Storgårds as music director in 1996. The orchestra's recording of Kalevi Aho's concertos for theremin and horn won Germany's ECHO Klassik award in 2015. In 2022, the Chamber Orchestra of Lapland, under Storgårds, was heard on a recording of Hans Abrahamsen's Schnee.