The Finnish National Opera and Ballet has appointed conductor Dima Slobodeniouk as its next Principal Conductor, beginning a four-year term from August 2026.
Slobodeniouk will succeed Hannu Lintu, Principal Conductor since 2022, who will be taking up his own new position as Music Director of Singapore Symphony at the start of the 2026–27 season. Slobodeniouk joins an illustrious list of Finnish musicians who have held the role in addition to Lintu, including Armas Järnefelt, Tauno Pylkkänen, Okko Kamu and Mikko Franck.
The appointment was confirmed by the Board of the Finnish National Opera and Ballet Foundation on 10th June, following consultations with staff groups and the Opera’s artists, who unanimously supported Slobodeniouk's appointment. He will take up the role on 1st August.
In announcing the appointment, Board Chair Kim Ignatius highlighted Slobodeniouk’s breadth of experience and collaborative approach, saying that his arrival would further strengthen the company's artistic standards.
Artistic Director of the Opera, Thomas de Mallet Burgess, said that the appointment centred on finding a musical leader capable of bringing together orchestra, singers and stage. “Dima Slobodeniouk is the candidate who presents with the distinctive qualities needed to unite the opera house's artistic forces,” he said.
Slobodeniouk is no stranger to the house. He conducted Verdi's Messa da Requiem in 2023 and, in the autumn, will conduct Britten's Peter Grimes as one of his first productions following the start of his tenure.
Born in Russia, Slobodeniouk settled in Finland at the age of 16 and now lives in Helsinki. He served as Music Director of Spain's Orquesta Sinfónica de Galicia from 2013 to 2022 and was Principal Conductor of the Lahti Symphony Orchestra and Artistic Director of the Sibelius Festival between 2016 and 2021. His guest-conducting engagements have included appearances with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Berliner Philharmoniker, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and London Symphony Orchestra.
