The annual opera festival in Savonlinna is the most famous cultural event in Finland and one of the most popular tourist venues. Opera concerts in Savonlinna are full of unforgettable experiences thanks to their high professional standard and the amazing setting of Olavinlinna castle and its surrounding nature.

Opera festivals in Savonlinna have been held in Olavinlinna since 1912. It was ar that time the famous Finnish opera singer Aino Akte, who had shown her talent in Paris Opera, London Covent Garden and New York Metropolitan Opera, decided to organize the first opera festival here. Many summers before and after the First World War operas of Finnish composers were heard here, and one festival was organized also in 1930.

In the 1970s, Martti Talvela – a world famous opera bass and a creative director of Savonlinna Opera Festival, defined two main goals for the festival: the highest possible level of professionalism of the performers and international popularity of the festival. Those goals are being reached all the time.

With time Savinlinna opera festival has become a month-long cultural event of international standing. The number of its visitors is growing year by year and averages 60 000, of whom almost 10% are foreigners. Thanks to the festival, Savonlinna got its fame among opera lovers throughout the world.

The repertoire of the festival features classical opera pieces as well as modern Finnish operas that take place on a regular basis in Savonlinna. A month-long performance program gives a wonderful chance to get acquainted with foreign opera theatres. Since 1987 foreign opera theatres have become regular guests of this musical event, including such famous theatres as Saint Petersburg’s Mariinskiy theatre, London’s Covent Garden and Moscow’s Bolshoy Theatre.

Performances take place at the unique medieval yard of Olavinlinna. The castle of Olavinlinna is open for visits all year round, but specially for the opera festival a huge covered hall of seating for 2264 is built every summer in the yard.