Klaus Mäkelä

Conductor Klaus Mäkelä emerged rapidly in the late 2010s and early 2020s to become one of the most prominent figures on the musical scene in Scandinavia and beyond. Mäkelä made concerto appearances with top regional orchestras around Finland as a cellist. He then made a guest-conducting appearance with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra in 2017, and Mäkelä was hired as the orchestra's principal guest conductor, beginning with the 2018-2019 season. He has since been appointed chief conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic, music director of the Orchestre de Paris, and Artist in Association with the Tapiola Sinfonietta. In 2022, the year he released his debut album (a complete set of the Sibelius symphonies), he was named artistic partner of the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra. In 2024, Mäkelä became the music director-designate of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.