Klaus Mäkelä

Klaus Mäkelä has held the position of chief conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra since 2020 and music director of Orchestre de Paris since 2021. In 2022 the Concertgebouw Orchestra announced that he will assume the title of chief conductor in September 2027. In the same season the Finnish conductor will commence as music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

An exclusive Decca Classics artist, he has recorded the Ballets Russes music of Debussy and Stravinsky with Orchestre de Paris. With the Oslo Philharmonic he has released the complete Sibelius Symphonies, as well as Sibelius and Prokofiev violin concertos with Janine Jansen.

With the Oslo Philharmonic, Mäkelä toured Japan, South Korea and Taiwan and gave guest performances in Hamburg, Amsterdam, Paris and Vienna. Shostakovich continues as a main composer focus in Mäkelä’s fifth season in Oslo. With a focus on French composers and new works, Mäkelä’s fourth season at the Orchestre de Paris will see guest performances across Europe and a return to Asia in June 2025.

His outstanding debut in September 2020 prompted the Concertgebouw Orchestra to invite him back four times within two years. As chief conductor designate, Mäkelä closely collaborates with the orchestra in a variety of programmes during the 2024-25 season, including Mahler’s Symphonies No. 1 and 8, the Christmas Matinee and the Annual Gala concert. November 2024 saw an extensive tour of the United States.

As a guest conductor, in 2024-25 Klaus Mäkelä returns to the Berliner Philharmoniker and The Cleveland Orchestra, and he made his first appearance with the Vienna Philharmonic.

As a cellist Mäkelä partners with members of the Oslo Philharmonic, Orchestre de Paris and Concertgebouw Orchestra for occasional programmes and each summer performs at the Verbier Festival.

Mäkelä studied conducting at the Sibelius Academy with Jorma Panula and cello with Marko Ylönen, Timo Hanhinen and Hannu Kiiski.