Finnish conductor Ari Rasilainen has been named Music Director of the National Symphony Orchestra of Chile, officially taking office on Jan. 1, 2027.

The news was announced by the University of Chile’s Center for Artistic and Cultural Extension (CEAC).

Rasilainen has led European orchestras, including the Norwegian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz in Germany, the Jyväskylä Symphony Orchestra, and the South West German Philharmonic in Konstanz.

He has a professional career as a violinist with the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra before devoting himself fully to orchestral conducting and is the 1989 winner of the second prize at the Copenhagen International Conducting Competition. Since 2011, Rasilainen has been Professor of Conducting at the University of Music Würzburg, where he continues to inspire the next generation of conductors.

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