In collaboration with Svenska Konsertbyran
Baritone Waltteri Torikka is quickly establishing himself as one of the most promising new talents in the next generation of opera singers from Finland.
Most recent & upcoming engagements:
This young baritone (b.1984) has performed to great acclaim under the baton of Leif Segerstam (Sibelius recording for Naxos) and he was selected as the first ever Finnish candidate to compete for the “Emmerich Smola Förderpreis” in Germany (SWR Fernsehen). His portrayal of “Don Giovanni” at the Helsinki Festival in the first production of New Generation Opera in 2013 was very well received by Finnish press. He is the 2013 recipient of Martti Talvela Award from the Martti Talvela Foundation. He won the 1st male prize in the Lappeenranta National Singing Competition in 2010 and was awarded “the HSBC laureates 2009 -prize” at the prestigious Mozart Academy of “Festival International d’Art Lyrique d’Aix-en-Provence” including several concerts in France and in Festival d’Aix-en-Provence.
Waltteri Torikka has his Master’s degree from the Opera Department of Sibelius Academy and from the Royal Danish Opera Academy in Copenhagen. He studied under guidance of Susanna Eken, Kirsten Buhl Møller, Roland Hermann and Pekka Kähkönen. He has attended masterclasses and received private tuition from high level teachers such as Julia Varady, Karita Mattila, Jeffrey Goldberg, Dale Fundling, Christen Stubbe Teglbjaerg, Elisabeth Werres, Helmut Deutsch, Mikael Eliasen, Jose Van Dam and Udo Reinemann. The year 2008 he studied in Germany as Erasmus student at the Karlsruhe Hochschule für Musik. He continues working regularly with Fiona MacSherry, Paul Farrington and John Evans in the UK. Torikka has received several grants from Finnish foundations such as Martti Talvela Award, Pro Musica Prize, Wegelius Foundation Scholarship as well as several study grants from the Finnish Culture Foundation.
While a student he sung “Schaunard” in “La Bohème” and “Journalist” in “Lulu” at the Royal Danish Opera. In the 2012 Opera Academy productions of “Don Giovanni” and ”Jevgeni Onegin” he portrayed the title roles with great acclaim. Waltteri Torikka has performed with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Jyväskylä Sinfonia, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and Camerata Salzburg among others. He has worked with conductors such as Mikko Franck, Michael Boder, Leif Segerstam, Ville Matvejeff, Louis Langrée and Esa-Pekka Salonen. Torikka has collaborated with opera directors such as Vilppu Kiljunen, Ville Saukkonen, Peter Sellars, John Ramster, Erik Söderblom and Stefan Herheim. He has sung together on stage with such great artists as Matti Salminen, Violetta Urmana, Ben Hepfner, Paolo Gavanelli, Tommi Hakala and Robert Dean Smith – to mention a few.
Torikka made his debut at the Finnish National Opera in 2009 as “Herastuomari” in Madetoja’s “Ostrobothnians”. For the 2012-2013 season he was appointed as an Apprentice Artist and performed on stage as Silvio (Pagliacci), Belcore (Elisir d’amore), Robin Hood (by Jukka Linkola) and Papageno (Zauberflöte) among others. In the season 2013-14 Torikka was heard in Finland as ”Figaro” in ”Le Nozze di Figaro” and ”Pilate” in ”Jesus Christ Superstar” –musical at the Åbo Svenska Teatern as well as soloist of Jyväskylä Sinfonia, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra (Sibelius recording with Leif Segerstam) and Vantaa Pops Orchestra.
At the Savonlinna Operafestival 2014 he appeared as ”Yamadori” in ”Madama Butterfly” and as ”Morales” in ”Carmen”. He sang “Melot” in the internationally acclaimed Tristan production by Salonen, Sellars & Viola at the Helsinki Festival and Baltic Sea Festival in 2012. Waltteri Torikka is the artistic director for a new comissioned work, the life of nobelist in literature F.E.Sillanpää, which premiered in 2017 in Finland.
Most recent & upcoming engagements:
- Morales in Carmen at Tampere Opera 2020
- Graf Danilo in Die lustige Witwe at Finnish National Opera 2021
- Concert at Savonlinna Opera Festival 2021
- Guglielmo in Cosi fan tutte at Opera Vaasa 2022
This young baritone (b.1984) has performed to great acclaim under the baton of Leif Segerstam (Sibelius recording for Naxos) and he was selected as the first ever Finnish candidate to compete for the “Emmerich Smola Förderpreis” in Germany (SWR Fernsehen). His portrayal of “Don Giovanni” at the Helsinki Festival in the first production of New Generation Opera in 2013 was very well received by Finnish press. He is the 2013 recipient of Martti Talvela Award from the Martti Talvela Foundation. He won the 1st male prize in the Lappeenranta National Singing Competition in 2010 and was awarded “the HSBC laureates 2009 -prize” at the prestigious Mozart Academy of “Festival International d’Art Lyrique d’Aix-en-Provence” including several concerts in France and in Festival d’Aix-en-Provence.
Waltteri Torikka has his Master’s degree from the Opera Department of Sibelius Academy and from the Royal Danish Opera Academy in Copenhagen. He studied under guidance of Susanna Eken, Kirsten Buhl Møller, Roland Hermann and Pekka Kähkönen. He has attended masterclasses and received private tuition from high level teachers such as Julia Varady, Karita Mattila, Jeffrey Goldberg, Dale Fundling, Christen Stubbe Teglbjaerg, Elisabeth Werres, Helmut Deutsch, Mikael Eliasen, Jose Van Dam and Udo Reinemann. The year 2008 he studied in Germany as Erasmus student at the Karlsruhe Hochschule für Musik. He continues working regularly with Fiona MacSherry, Paul Farrington and John Evans in the UK. Torikka has received several grants from Finnish foundations such as Martti Talvela Award, Pro Musica Prize, Wegelius Foundation Scholarship as well as several study grants from the Finnish Culture Foundation.
While a student he sung “Schaunard” in “La Bohème” and “Journalist” in “Lulu” at the Royal Danish Opera. In the 2012 Opera Academy productions of “Don Giovanni” and ”Jevgeni Onegin” he portrayed the title roles with great acclaim. Waltteri Torikka has performed with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, Jyväskylä Sinfonia, Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and Camerata Salzburg among others. He has worked with conductors such as Mikko Franck, Michael Boder, Leif Segerstam, Ville Matvejeff, Louis Langrée and Esa-Pekka Salonen. Torikka has collaborated with opera directors such as Vilppu Kiljunen, Ville Saukkonen, Peter Sellars, John Ramster, Erik Söderblom and Stefan Herheim. He has sung together on stage with such great artists as Matti Salminen, Violetta Urmana, Ben Hepfner, Paolo Gavanelli, Tommi Hakala and Robert Dean Smith – to mention a few.
Torikka made his debut at the Finnish National Opera in 2009 as “Herastuomari” in Madetoja’s “Ostrobothnians”. For the 2012-2013 season he was appointed as an Apprentice Artist and performed on stage as Silvio (Pagliacci), Belcore (Elisir d’amore), Robin Hood (by Jukka Linkola) and Papageno (Zauberflöte) among others. In the season 2013-14 Torikka was heard in Finland as ”Figaro” in ”Le Nozze di Figaro” and ”Pilate” in ”Jesus Christ Superstar” –musical at the Åbo Svenska Teatern as well as soloist of Jyväskylä Sinfonia, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra (Sibelius recording with Leif Segerstam) and Vantaa Pops Orchestra.
At the Savonlinna Operafestival 2014 he appeared as ”Yamadori” in ”Madama Butterfly” and as ”Morales” in ”Carmen”. He sang “Melot” in the internationally acclaimed Tristan production by Salonen, Sellars & Viola at the Helsinki Festival and Baltic Sea Festival in 2012. Waltteri Torikka is the artistic director for a new comissioned work, the life of nobelist in literature F.E.Sillanpää, which premiered in 2017 in Finland.