The Sastamala Gregoriana festival has appointed American-born musician Anthony Marini (born 1986) as its new Artistic Director. His three-year term will span 2026–2028 and will begin with the festival’s 30th anniversary celebration in summer 2026. The agreement includes the possibility of a two-year extension for 2029–2030. Chair of the board Elina Tiainen commented on the decision:
– The selection of the new Artistic Director was a multi-stage process in which we placed strong emphasis on both the valuable core of Sastamala Gregoriana as the largest early music festival in Finland and the need for fresh new initiatives. Marini impressed us with his leadership experience, artistic vision, and commitment to audience outreach. We are happy and proud to welcome Marini to our team to continue the development of Sastamala Gregoriana.
A native of Upstate New York (USA), Anthony Marini moved to Helsinki in 2010, when his European – and perhaps more importantly, Finnish – life began. Over the years, he has held nearly every role imaginable in the music world: from section player to concertmaster, chamber musician to soloist, translator to music engraver, librarian to stagehand, board chair to artistic director, clinician to teacher, IT support to recording producer, and just about everything in between.
Having arrived as a foreigner who knew no one, he is now at the heart of the early music scene in Finland and across the Nordic and Baltic regions. Anthony served as co-artistic director of the Finnish Baroque Orchestra from 2022 to 2025. He has served as chair of the board of the Encanto Association (which organises the Helsinki Early Music Festival) and continues to sit on the boards of the Finnish Early Music Union and the Finnish Soloists’ Association. In 2025, he began his work as the new artistic director of the Sastamala Gregoriana Festival, with his first festival taking place in summer 2026.
Anthony’s love for early music began with Jody Gatwood, his (modern) violin teacher at the Catholic University of America in Washington, DC. With Gatwood’s encouragement, he began supplementing his concurrent studies in music and computer science with extracurricular Baroque violin lessons with Risa Browder (Baroque violin teacher at the Peabody Conservatory) and by playing in Peabody’s Baltimore Baroque Band. His active freelance life, along with his participation in summer courses such as Oberlin’s Baroque Performance Institute and Tafelmusik’s Baroque Summer Institute, deepened his curiosity about historical performance.
It soon became clear that his life needed a radical change of course: to move to Europe, pursue Baroque music seriously, and attempt to build a life as a freelance musician. He went on to study at both the Sibelius Academy, under Minna Kangas and Sirkka-Liisa Kaakinen-Pilch, and at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris as a student of François Fernandez.
Anthony is an active recitalist, chamber musician, orchestral musician, soloist, and ensemble leader. He performs regularly as concertmaster, soloist, and leader with the Finnish Baroque Orchestra, the King’s Road Musicians, and Ensemble Floridante, and has been invited in similar roles by ensembles including the Helsinki Baroque Orchestra, Espoo Baroque, the Oulu Baroque Orchestra, the Corelli Consort, Ensemble Zaïs, Orfeus Barock, and Barokkanerne. He has also performed with groups such as Ensemble Nylandia, Opus X, The King’s Consort, Le Poème Harmonique, and Les Ambassadeurs. Chamber ensembles where Anthony is active include FiBO Players, Eloisa Consort, and Rosetta Ensemble. His playing can be heard on recordings released by FiBO Records, BIS, Sony, Paraty, Ondine, and Erato. In addition to performing, Anthony is an active teacher and clinician. He teaches Baroque violin at the Sibelius Academy and regularly gives instruction at summer courses such as Käläviä Goes Baroque and the Helsinki Early Music Association’s summer course.
Above all, Anthony sees himself as a musician first, before identifying as a violinist – or even as a Baroque violinist. He enjoys a wide range of instruments and musical styles and continually strives to broaden his artistic horizons. In addition to the violin, Anthony plays viola, viola d’amore, vielle, tenor and bass viola da gamba, nyckelharpa, and almost any other string instrument he can get his hands on. Alongside Baroque music, he has a deep interest in more modern repertoire (and continues to substitute in modern orchestras around Finland), as well as folk music, particularly the Nordic, Irish, and North American fiddle traditions.
Themes for the Artistic Period 2026–2028 and a New Audience Engagement Model Bring Early Music into Everyday Life
In the coming years, the early music festival will delve deeper into the emotional power, historical significance, and virtuosity of music through its chosen themes. The festival board has approved the 2026–2028 thematic programming, as well as a new model for audience outreach. These align with the festival’s artistic vision and strategic goals of diversifying audiences and strengthening engagement.
2026 – Tears and Joy: Affects in Music
In its 30th anniversary year, the festival explores emotional expression in music: sorrow, joy, longing, and ecstasy. The theme is rooted in the doctrine of affections and the emotional symbolism of musical keys, examining how composers and performers through the ages have depicted the human emotional landscape. The 2026 anniversary edition will be held from 15 to 19 July.
2027 – Crown and Glory: Music for Monarchs
The 2027 theme explores the influence of power and court culture on music. Renaissance and Baroque monarchs were not only rulers but also important patrons and champions of the arts. The programme will highlight ceremony, royal aesthetics, and musical splendour.
2028 – Virtuosi: The Art of Brilliance
Virtuosity will be explored in its many dimensions: not only technical prowess but also intellectual and expressive brilliance. In 2028 we celebrate Baroque mastery and the richness of musicianship across eras.
Alongside the summer’s main event, the festival is launching a new strategic outreach model. This will extend to Early Music Day concerts, autumn coffee concerts, and multi-sensory Christmas experiences. Sastamala Gregoriana will also bring music into schools, daycares, care homes, and community centres across the region, aiming to show how early music can move, unite, and promote well-being.
Read more on the website of the event: https://www.sastamalagregoriana.fi/
Article photo: Anthony Marini, photographer: Johannes Rantanen.
