Photo: Mona Salminen

Mari Palo

Soprano Mari Palo is one of the most sought-after Finnish sopranos both on domestic stage and internationally. As a versatile artist Palo has captivated audiences with her radiant presence across genre boundaries.

Mari Palo started her vocal studies at the Kokkola Conservatory and took her master’s degree at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. She has performed around the world as a lied singer and soloist in orchestras, and is also a popular guest at chamber music festivals.

Mari Palo has a close relationship with the Finnish National Opera (FNOB) where she has been a regular guest soloist since 1999. Her recent highlights at FNOB include Hanna Glavari in Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow and a name role in Philip Venables’ highly topical opera Denis & Katya in 2023, a production collaboration between Taite ry, Musica Nova and FNOB. The summer 2023 sees her in several roles of Eeva Kontu’s new opera Armi, which will premiered at the Ilmajoki Music Festival. In 2024 she will return to the FNOB as Wellgunde in Wagner’s Götterdemmerung.

In addition to her busy concert calendar, Mari Palo also passes on her knowledge and experience to future colleagues. She works as a singing teacher at the Centria University of Applied Sciences. Mari Palo is the artistic director of the Oulu Music Festival together with Jukka Perko. The President of Finland awarded her the Pro Finlandia Medal of the Order of the Lion of Finland in 2019.