The 55th Kuhmo Music Courses will once again be an incredible experience for young music professionals or those aspiring to become professionals. Master classes are available in both chamber music and private lessons for various instruments. Participants in the workshops will not only prepare concert programs under the guidance of top teachers but also perform with them. New offerings include an improvisation workshop and “Instrument info” lectures for string players and pianists.

Top-level tuition is once again available. 100 artists will come to Kuhmo, about half of whom will also teach at the music courses. Among the teachers are professionals from the most important music academies and festivals in Finland and Europe. These include Violin Professor Réka Szilvay of the Sibelius Academy, Viola Professor Tomoko Akasaka of the Münster University of Music, violinist Johannes Meissl, Artistic Director of the International Summer Academy and the European Chamber Music Academy (ECMA) at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna, and Piano Professor Marianna Shirinyan of the Royal Danish Academy of Music. Cellist Thorleif Thedéen is visiting professor of cello at the Royal College of Music in London and Professor at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo. Cellist Jakob Koranyi is professor at the Royal Collage of Music in Stocholm.

Chamber music master classes are taught by Meissl and Shirinyan, as well as the internationally renowned Affinity Quartet, Paddington Trio, and Trio Gaspard. Individual master classes are for piano, violin, viola, cello, double bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, French horn, and accordion.

There are four chamber music workshops, led by pianists Paavali Jumppanen and Marianna Shirinyan and violinists Anna Gebert and Daniel Rowland. The workshops will prepare chamber music performances for festival concerts on July 18 and July 25.

The group improvisation workshop at the Kuhmo Music Courses is aimed at anyone interested in and curious about improvisation. The goal is for participants to experience the joys of improvisation with a low threshold, discover their hidden potential, and later utilize their experiences in their solo and chamber music playing.

The improvisation workshop will be led by violinist Tuulia Hero. Hero, who lives in London, graduated with the highest honors from David Dolan’s improvisation class and has conducted improvisation workshops at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and its youth program, as well as at the Royal Opera House in London.

The ”Instrument info” lectures will provide an informal opportunity to delve deeper into the soul of string instruments and pianos. The lectures will be led by the string instrument makers of Kuhmo Chamber Music and concert tuner Matti Kyllönen. The chamber music workshops, improvisation workshop and lectures are free for master class participants.

For many young musicians, Kuhmo has been an important source of inspiration, with positive effects lasting for years. Master courses have been attended by current artistic directors, violinists Minna Pensola and Antti Tikkanen, as well as pianist Paavali Jumppanen, who will also perform at the festival this summer.

Three scholarships are available for course participants. Two scholarships of 250 euros each will be awarded during the application phase. At the end of the courses, a 1,000–euro scholarship will be awarded to an exceptionally distinguished and talented student or ensemble.

The Kuhmo Music Courses are supported by grants from the Arts Promotion Centre Finland and the City of Kuhmo. The scholarships come from a fund named after violinist Oleg Kagan.

Applications for the Kuhmo Music Courses close on April 10. The application form can be found on the website https://kuhmofestival.fi/en/music-courses/.

More information:

Kuhmo Chamber Music, tel. +358 44 544 5162