Facts

The Avanti! Chamber Orchestra was formed in 1983 by conductors Esa-Pekka Salonen, Olli Pohjola and Jukka-Pekka Saraste. An ensemble that varies in size from a string quartet to a symphony orchestra, it specializes in no particular genre. Rather, it is proud to be a specialist in all styles with a strong sense of responsibility for the music of today.

Avanti! has had a tremendous influence on music in Finland. As the Finnish national daily Helsingin Sanomat once said, "Avanti! is like King Midas: anything it touches immediately turns to gold." The orchestra's first record was awarded the Gramophone. Prize of the Finnish Broadcasting Company (YLE). The next one prompted Fanfare to write: "Among such new groups here and abroad as Orpheus and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, Avanti! has made a bid to be recognized as primus inter pares." Since then, Avanti! has featured on many CDs (for BIS, Ondine and Finlandia) conducted mainly by Esa-Pekka Salonen, Jukka-Pekka Saraste and Sakari Oramo.

Avanti! tours regularly in Finland and Europe. Since 1986 it has also had a festival of its own called Suvisoitto (Summer Sounds) in the little Finnish town of Porvoo. It is closely associated with the best Finnish conductors and performs with such international artists and conductors as Ralf Gothoni, Monica Groop, Heinz Holliger, Oliver Knussen, Gidon Kremer, Diego Masson, Ingo Metzmacher, Charles Neidich, Alexei Lubimov, Antony Pay, Christian Tetzlaff and Lothar Zagrosek.