Oulu Sinfonia is Finland’s northernmost symphony orchestra, originally founded in 1937 and municipalized in 1961. Present name, Oulu Sinfonia was adopted in 2005. The orchestra has 61 professional full-time musicians.
The repertoire of the Oulu Sinfonia is based on classical season concerts and completed with diverse contents such as opera, cinematic concerts, ethnomusic and jazz concerts as well as concerts for families and children. The orchestra also steps out of its home in various formations, to take its music to many locations around town.
The orchestra’s Chief Conductor since January 2022 has been Rumon Gamba, who took up the post after a long tenure by Johannes Gustavsson (2013–2021). During the past decades, the post of Artistic Director was held by been Urpo Pesonen, Paavo Rautio, Onni Kelo, Rauno Rännäli, Ari Angervo, Peeter Lilje, Arvo Volmer, Dmitri Slobodeniouk and Anna-Maria Helsing. Principal Guest Conductors have been John Storgårds, Susanna Mälkki and Jaakko Kuusisto.
Oulu Sinfonia has made several recordings, including the opera Messenius and Lucia by Olli Kortekangas (the orchestra’s composer-in-residence- from 1997 to 2009) as well as the whole orchestral production by Leevi Madetoja, an album of violin concertos by Uuno Klami and Einar Englund, opera arias by W. A. Mozart, guitar concertos by Kimmo Hakola and Toshio Hosokawa, an album full of rarely recorded music by the Swedish symphonist Ludvig Norman, rock artist Ismo Alanko’s pieces arranged for symphony orchestra and Sininen Pallo -album for children. The lates album was released in August 2023. It is conducted by Rumon Gamba and includes overtures from Finnish composers.