Markus Nykänen

Ensemble: (Current) Finnish National Opera, (Former) OperAvenir Opera Studio

Freelancer: Royal Opera House London, Dutch National Opera, Aix-en-Provence Festival, Hamburg State Opera

Finnish tenor Markus Nykänen is a member of the Finnish National Opera, where he has appeared in a wide range of leading roles, including Rodolfo in La Bohème, Alfredo in La Traviata, Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly, and Victorin in Die tote Stadt. As a guest artist, he has performed at prominent venues such as the Royal Opera House in London, Dutch National Opera in Amsterdam, and Hamburg State Opera. He made his debut at the Aix-en-Provence Festival in 2021, creating the role of the Groom in Kaija Saariaho’s Innocence, a production that continued in Helsinki, London, and Amsterdam in the 2022–2023 season.

Mr. Nykänen began his musical training in Espoo, Finland, singing in the local boys’ choir and studying at the Kungsvägen Musikinstitut. He later received further vocal training from teachers including Susanna Eken, Sherman Lowe, Mariella Devia, and Kiri Te Kanawa. Prior to his operatic career, he worked extensively as an actor and musical theatre performer in Helsinki, appearing at venues such as Theater Viirus, Klockriketeatern, Svenska Teatern, and Wasa Teater.

From 2012 to 2014, Mr. Nykänen was a member of the young artist programme OperAvenir at Theater Basel, where he performed roles including Mengone (Lo speziale), Spoletta (Tosca), Triquet (Eugen Onegin), and Die Sonne (The Indian Queen). He remained affiliated with Theater Basel as a guest artist in the 2014–2015 season, singing Cassio in Otello. Subsequent engagements included appearances at Hamburg State Opera as Iopas in Les Troyens under Kent Nagano and as Remendado in Carmen, as well as roles at Opera Basel and Finnish National Opera. He also created a leading role in the world premiere of Indigo by Kivioja and Toppinen at the Finnish National Opera.

In recent seasons, Mr. Nykänen has expanded his repertoire with roles such as Don José (Carmen), Ferrando (Covid fan tutte), Camille (Die lustige Witwe), and Il tenore calmo in the premiere of Iiro Rantala’s Sanatorio Express. In 2024–2025, he returns to the Finnish National Opera to perform Gabriel von Eisenstein (Die Fledermaus), Chevalier de la Force (Dialogues des Carmélites), Vicomte Raoul de Chagny (The Phantom of the Opera), and Antti Hanka (The Ostrobothnians by Leevi Madetoja).

Mr. Nykänen was a finalist in the Lappeenranta Singing Competition and has appeared in concert with orchestras such as the Basel Symphony Orchestra and Hamburg Philharmonic. He has worked under conductors including Kent Nagano, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Susanna Mälkki, and Sakari Oramo.