Finn of the Month
 Satu Vänskä is the Assistant Lead of the Australian Chamber Orchestra (ACO). She was born to a Finnish family in Japan where she took her first violin lessons at the age of three. In 1989 her family moved back to Finland where Satu continued her studies at the Lahti Conservatorium, the Sibelius Academy and the Kuhmo Violin School.
She has also studied extensively in Central Europe where she played with Munich Philharmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and tutored at the Young Bavarian Philharmonic. She finished her diploma in Munich in 2001. Satu Vänskä has performed as a soloist around the world and she joined the ACO in January 2004.
How did you end up getting a job with the leading Chamber Orchestra in the World?
-- I have of course been very familiar with the ACO, it being one of the leading Chamber Orchestras in the world. When I was working in Germany, I saw that they were advertising a position on the web. I applied for it and here I am.
What is a typical day for you?
-- I think I have a very unique lifestyle as a violinist. I live in Manly so I take the ferry to the city where we rehearse from 10 (am) until 5 (pm). Then I go home and surf until the sun goes down. This is my life when I am in Sydney. One week every month we go on a tour, therefore airports and Qantas lounges have become very familiar places for me. In the ACO we spend so much time together that you need to fit in to (the) group, both professionally and personally . The ACO becomes your family.
What does an Assistant Lead do in the ACO?
-- It means that I am always playing next to Richard (R. Tognetti, the Artistic Director and Lead Violin) as the First Violin. The ACO is very unique as it is the only Chamber Orchestra in the world that does not have a Conductor.
What do you think Finland and Australia have in common in the music world?
-- For instance, in Central Europe there is a lot of pressure to play very traditionally. That is not the case in Australia and Finland. Our approach is very similar - it is pure, simple and musically very inspiring. The ACO mixes music with other types of music, in Finland we also do that. Another thing that we share is that we do not have traditional formalities and there is a genuine joy of musicianship. We also have similar humour and our mentality is straightforward.
And the main differences are?
-- The financial support for art and culture. In Finland we are enjoying very generous financial support from the Government, banks and organizations such as The Finnish Cultural Foundation. There is much more appreciation for culture and arts than here. On the other hand here you really need to be creative to get the financial support, which can also be a good thing. It drives you to excellence. Richard Tognetti is the only musician in Australia who has a Guadagnini - violin provided by a bank - the Commonwealth Bank of Australia. In Finland this sponsorship practice is very common, even some students have a Stradivarius' .
What do you miss about Finland?
-- This sounds like a cliché, but it is Sauna, Sibelius and Salmiakki (famous Finnish salted liquorice). I have actually been thinking of building a sauna cottage in my garden. I think we Finns carry Sibelius and Finnish nature in our minds. There is Kullervo (a character from the Finnish National Epic Kalevala) in all of us.
Your favourite Australian thing?
-- Surf and Sun. We have here in Australia the similarity with Finland that we want to have nature and space around us.
To catch up with Satu Vänskä and the ACO visit www.aco.com.au
Photo: ACO Stephen Oxenbury
| 
