Kaija Saarikettu (born 17 May 1957, Ekenäs, Finland) is a Finnish violinist and the Professor of strings and chamber music at Sibelius Academy (now part of the University of the Arts Helsinki). [1] [2]
Saarikettu graduated from Sibelius Academy in 1977, after which she continued her studies in Sweden under Endre Wolf. [3] In 1980, she shared first prize in the Kuopio Violin Competition, and was a finalist in the International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition. [3]
She began teaching the violin at Sibelius Academy in 1989, and was granted tenure there as Professor of solo strings and chamber music in 1995. [3] In 1997-1998, she also held a professorial post at Sweden's Edsberg Music Institute, part of the Royal College of Music, Stockholm. [3]
Saarikettu has performed internationally in eg. the USA, UK and Russia, as well as judging violin competitions such as the 2015 International Joseph Joachim Violin Competition. [4] [3] She is the artistic director of the annual Kaustinen Chamber Music Week . [5] She is also known as a composer and conductor. [6] [7]
Saarikettu has recorded nine albums, mostly for the Finlandia label of Warner Classics; these include the complete violin works of Jean Sibelius, as well as music by Einar Englund and other Finnish composers. [8] [3] [6]