Photo: Maarit Kytöharju

Lotta Wennäkoski

Lotta Wennäkoski (born 1970) is a composer based in Helsinki, Finland. Her output consist of orchestral, chamber and vocal works, and her pieces are frequently performed worldwide. In 2017 BBC commissioned Wennäkoski an orchestral work Flounce, the premier of which was at the Last Night of the Proms in 2017. It has later been performed around 50 times by now. Among later commissions one can mention the string quartet Pige (2022) for the Danish String Quartet, the harp concerto Sigla (2022) for Sivan Magen and the Finnish RSO and the violin concerto Prosoidia (2022-23) for Ilya Gringolts and BBC Symphony Orchestra. Wennäkoski has also recently finished her first big opera Regine, a commission from Savonlinna Opera Festival.

Wennäkoski has been awarded Finland’s State Prize of Music in 2020. The Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra has recorded Wennäkoski’s orchestral music in 2015 (Soie) and in 2022 (Sigla) – both for the label Ondine. The latter has just won the Gramophone Award 2023 for the contemporary music category.