HEIKKI HATTUNEN TENOR BIOGRAPHY
Finnish tenor Heikki Hattunen is known for his beautiful, high-placed voice, marked by musicality, clarity, and agility. With a compelling stage presence and refined vocal control, he moves effortlessly between opera, sacred music, and art song.
Since 2020, Hattunen has been a member of the Finnish National Opera, where he made his house debut already in the 2018–2019 season, performing roles in the world premieres of Sanatorio Express and Jää (Ice). He has since sung in a wide range of productions, including The Phantom of the Opera, Salome, and The Ostrobothnians in the 2024 autumn season.
In recent years, Hattunen has expanded his concert and oratorio work with notable solo appearances. In 2024, he made his debut as the Evangelist in Bach’s St. Matthew Passion at Helsinki Cathedral, sang Archangel Gabriel in Salmenkangas’s Maria Oratorium at the Kirkon juhlat festival, and appeared as soloist in Verdi’s Requiem with the Espoo Symphony Orchestra. He made his debut at the Savonlinna Opera Festival in 2023 as Monostatos in The Magic Flute, and his Verdi Requiem debut as soloist the same year.
Hattunen is also a frequent Evangelist and soloist in both Western and Orthodox sacred music and has a particular affinity for demanding Lied repertoire. His versatility and deep musical grounding are rooted in a dual education: he holds a Master of Music in vocal performance from the Sibelius Academy (2019), and a Master of Theology in Orthodox Church music and choral conducting from the University of Joensuu (2010). Before turning to full-time singing, he worked as a cantor and was ordained as a deacon in the Orthodox Church of Finland under the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
In 2025, he was awarded an international audition grant by the Finnish Cultural Foundation. He also received third prize in the Kangasniemi Singing Competition in 2016 and gave his international recital debut in Örebro, Sweden in 2021.
