"Happy About Joint Successes" - Jukka-Pekka Saraste Extends Contract as Principal Conductor of the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne

COLOGNE, Germany, April 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ --

Jukka-Pekka Saraste (59) will continue to ensure the excellent sound of the WDR Symphony Orchestra. He has extended his contract with the WDR to the 2018/2019 season. Saraste has been Principal Conductor of the WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne since 2010/2011. WDR radio director Valerie Weber: "With Jukka-Pekka Saraste, we are banking on the stabilization of a successful artistic partnership. We can look back on very successful years and look forward to the next ones. Together, we have set ourselves the goal of developing the high quality standards of the WDR Symphony Orchestra and, as a cultural ambassador in and for NRW, as well as in Germany and abroad, to offer world class classical music." Jukka-Pekka Saraste: "The cooperation with the WDR Symphony Orchestra has never been better than it is today. Therefore, I am happy about the successes we have achieved together. We will continuously extend our repertoire and also present it in international concerts and projects."

Once again in the 2015/2016 concert season, the musicians and their principal conductor can provide evidence of their fruitful partnership Proof: in addition to concerts in the NRW-broadcasting region, guest tours in Germany and abroad are on the agenda. Following the highly successful visit to Japan in December 2014, in October 2015 a tour of China is on the programme. In addition - meanwhile an established tradition - there will be three nights in the Grand Salzburg Festival Hall and two at the Festival of San Sebastián. With Strasbourg and Bruges, the neighbouring European region will also be included.

Jukka-Pekka Saraste was born in in Finland in 1956. From 1987 to 2002 he was Musical Director of the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra. After working as Musical Director of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and as the first Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, in 2006 he took over the direction of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. Since 2008 he has been Artistic Director of the Lahti Symphony Orchestra. In addition, Saraste has worked as guest conductor with major American orchestras and, among others, with the Munich Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, the Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala Milan, the Orchestre National de France, the Staatskapelle Dresden and the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin.

Photo at http://www.ard-foto.de

Press contact: Barbara Feiereis, WDR Press and Information, Tel. +44(0)221-2207122, barbara.feiereis@wdr.de