Anu Honkanen

Anu Honkanen attended her first piano lesson at the age of five in Toholampi. The strong tradition of wind music in the local area and in her childhood home drew her to the flute at the age of ten. She studied at the Central Ostrobothnia, Oulu and Lahti Conservatoires, as well as on the youth training programme at the Sibelius Academy. Honkanen completed her postgraduate qualification in flute teaching in 2000 in Lahti, under the tutelage of Rainer Risberg.

From the very beginning, Anu has enjoyed playing the piccolo, and in her current role it is at times even her principal instrument. She has also studied the transverse flute.

Before joining the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra (since 2004), Honkanen’s orchestral engagements included the Tampere Philharmonic (1996–97), the Oulu Symphony Orchestra (1997–99) and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra (1999–2004). She has taught, amongst other places, at the Liminka Region Music School whilst a student, as well as at Turku Metsänkävijät, the Turku Conservatoire and the Turku University of Applied Sciences Academy of Arts.

Anu Honkanen is also a keen home cook. In connection with this, she completed a basic qualification in culinary arts at the Turku Vocational Institute in 2014–15. Although she has no interest in working in the restaurant industry, at least at home her husband, three children and little dog Unto get to sample all sorts of her culinary experiments.