In the classical music world, violinist Christian Tetzlaff is known as an exceptional musician and is highly praised for his expressive and sensitive interpretations. His individual approach to the score, in which he always seeks the emotional and structural depth of a composition, is often described in concerts as a truly existential experience. Since his spectacular debut with Schoenberg’s Violin Concerto in Berlin, Munich and Cleveland in 1988, this violinist has performed with leading orchestras of the highest calibre and has collaborated with multiple renowned conductors. His extensive repertoire ranges from Bach’s solo sonatas and partitas to lesser-known concertos by Giovanni Battista Viotti and Joseph Joachim to contemporary works by György Ligeti, Jörg Widmann and Thomas Ades. In February 2026, the violinist is giving the world premiere of Ondrej Adamek’s Violin Concerto No. 2 in Paris, followed by national premieres in Switzerland and the Czech Republic.

Chamber music is an integral part of Christian Tetzlaff’s career. In 1994, he founded the Tetzlaff Quartet together with his sister, cellist Tanja Tetzlaff, and which was awarded the Diapason d’or l’année. This violinist has also received numerous awards for his many recordings as soloist, including the Diapason d’or, the German Record Critics’ Award and the Midem Classical Award. In 2023, he also took over as artistic director of the Spannungen Festival in Heimbach. This extraordinary musician has enjoyed a close friendship with The Deutsche Kammer­philharmonie Bremen for many years.

Born in Heinola, Finland, Jukka-Pekka Saraste began his career as a violinist before studying conducting with Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. Saraste has long been considered one of the most outstanding conductors of his generation, distinguished above all by his extraordinary musical depth and integrity. He has been Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra since September 2023. Until 2019, he was Chief Conductor of the WDR Sinfonie Orchester Köln and before that held the same position with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, which appointed him their first ever Honorary Conductor at the end of his tenure. As a guest conductor, Jukka-Pekka Saraste regularly appears with major orchestras around the world, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the NHK Symphony Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra and the New York Philharmonic, to name but a few.

In recent years in particular, this Finnish conductor has turned his attention increasingly to opera, conducting successful productions at venues such as the Theater an der Wien, the Bayerischen Staats Oper in Munich and the Grand Théâtre Genève. Jukka-Pekka Saraste has also received international recognition for his numerous recordings. In addition, he is a committed supporter of the next generation. The LEAD! Foundation, which he founded, supports young artists in leadership positions. In addition to many prestigious awards, he has also been awarded honorary doctorates by York University Toronto and the Sibelius Academy Helsinki.