SATU VIHAVAINEN

 

Satu Vihavainen graduated in 1981 from the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki (singing teacher's degree), having had earlier vocal training at the Music Conservatory in Kuopio. The same year, she also graduated from the Opera Studio in Helsinki and received her singing diploma.
However already in 1980, Satu Vihavainen had made her debut at the Finnish National Opera. Two years later she got soloist member of the opera ensemble. Her concert followed in 1983.

In Finland�fs prestigious singing competitions, she succeeded twice to win the 2nd prize (in 1980 in Savonlinna at the Timo Mustakallio Song Competition, and in 1981 at the Lappeenranta Song Competition).

Abroad she took part in singing courses at the Jugendfestspieltreffen Bayreuth, and studied with Vera Rosza in London, Rudolf Bautz in Aachen, Herbert Brauer in Berlin as well as Irina Gavrilovici in Vienna.
Satu Vihavainen appeared as guest soloist a.o. in Essen, Edinburgh, at the Royal Opera in Stockholm, in Los Angeles. She sung also solo parts in such festivals as the Wagner Festival in Bayreuth, the International Savonlinna Opera Festival, the Opera Cava Festival and the Helsinki Festival.

Her extensive repertoire encompasses many famous soprano roles: Micaëla in Bizet�fs Carmen, Marguerite in Gounod�fs Faust, Mimi in Puccini�fs La Bohème and Cio-Cio-San in Madama Butterfly as well as Nedda in Leoncavallo�fs I Pagliacci, Desdemona in Verdi�fs Othello, Pamina in The Magic Flute, The Countess in Figaro�fs Wedding and Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni, all by Mozart, Ellen Orford in Britten�fs Peter Grimes, Agathe in Weber�fs Der Freischütz, Susanna in Musorgsky�fs Khovanshchina, Freia in Rheingold, Gerhilde in Die Walküre, Gutrune in Die Götterdämmerung, all Wagner operas, Maddalena in Giordano�fs Andrea Chenier as well as Tatjana in Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin and others.

Satu Vihavainen has interpreted also important Finnish opera heroines on stage like Anja in Merikanto�fs Juha, Nora in Rautavaara�fs The House of the Sun, the sister in Sallinen�fs Kullervo and Regan in the same composer�fs King Lear as well as Riitta in Kokkonen�fs The Last Temptations.

She has taken part as vocal soloist in the most known choral works, oratorios, passions and orchestra works. She has given solo concerts and has done recordings. She appeared as soloist with different orchestras in many parts of Europe, Turkey, Russia, Japan and The United States, and she has worked with many renown conductors such as Neeme Järvi, Eri Klas, Leif Segerstam, Ulf Söderblom, Ari Rasilainen, Ralf Weikert and Christian Thielemann.

In addition to her work as opera singer, Satu Vihavainen has taught singing at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki from 1988 to 1998.

In the Finnish vacation area at Nilsiä she was 1998-2003 the artistic director of the Music Festival Satua vai totta. In the same function she also led the Opera Cava Festival 2004-2008. Since August 2008, she chairs the culture commission of North-Savonia.

Satu Vihavainen has received several awards and distinctions from Finnish culture and public institutions.