Klaus Mäkelä

Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä has held the position of chief conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic since 2020 and music director of the Orchestre de Paris since September 2021. He assumes the title of chief conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in September 2027 and, in the same season, begins his tenure as Zell Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. 

An exclusive Decca Classics artist, Mäkelä has released three albums with the Orchestre de Paris including Ballet Russes scores by Stravinsky and Debussy, as well as Berlioz’s “Symphonie fantastique” and Ravel’s “La Valse”.  With the Oslo Philharmonic, he has recorded the complete Sibelius Symphonies, Sibelius’ and Prokofiev’s first Violin Concerto with Janine Jansen and Shostakovich’s Symphonies Nos. 4, 5 and 6.

With the Oslo Philharmonic, Klaus Mäkelä opens the 2025 / 26 season with Mahler’s Symphony No. 7 and closes with Magnus Lindberg’s 1985 tour de force, “Kraft”. Additional highlights include a January tour and residencies in Hamburg, Vienna, Paris and Essen with performances of Shostakovich Symphony No. 8, Sibelius’ “Lemminkäinen Suite” and both the Tchaikovsky and Sibelius violin concertos, with soloist Lisa Batiashvili. 

Mäkielä’s fifth season with the Orchestre de Paris features wide-ranging programmes, from Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis” to Pascal Dusapin’s “Antigone”. With a continued focus on the French repertoire and contemporary music, they also perform Bizet’s Symphony in C and Franck’s Symphony in D minor, as well as new works by Guillaume Connesson, Joan Tower, Anders Hillborg, Ellen Reid and Sauli Zinovjev. 

With the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Mäkelä’s performances at the 2025 BBC Proms and Salzburg Festival are followed by an extensive tour of South Korea and Japan in the fall. At home, they celebrate the 50th anniversary of the traditional Christmas Matinée TV broadcasts and at the 2026 Baden Baden Easter Festival commence an annual residency, taking over from the Berliner Philharmoniker.

Klaus Mäkelä conducts the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in four residencies at Symphony Center this season and leads a U.S. tour, making his first appearance with the CSO at Carnegie Hall in February, performing Sibelius’ “Lemminkäinen“ and Richard Strauss’ “Ein Heldenleben“. He returns to the States in Summer 2026 for his Ravinia Festival debut, leading the CSO in two programmes.

In the 2025/26 season, Mäkelä appears as guest conductor with the Berliner Philharmoniker. As a cellist, he partners with members of the Orchestre de Paris and Concertgebouw Orchestra.