The Naantali Music Festival’s traditional park concert at Kultaranta will be held on Saturday, 13 June 2026.. The concert is titled“Ei Kultarantaa rakkaampaa!” (“Nothing Dearer than Kultaranta!”), and it has been designed —at the inspiration of President of the Republic Alexander Stubb—as a summit of musical styles. The concert, beginning at 2 pm in the afternoon, will feature three genres: chamber music, jazz, and film music.
- “After last summer’s wonderful park concert, we discussed with the presidential couple their wishes for the coming years, and President Stubb suggested the theme of three different genres. Starting from the President’s idea, we began planning this programme,” says Emma Anttila, CEO of the Naantali Music Festival.
CHAMBER MUSIC: YOUNG ENERGY, GREAT EMOTIONS
The Artistic Director of the Naantali Music Festival, Elina Vähälä, has chosen a programme to open the concert that includes, among others, the finale of Felix Mendelssohn’s String Octet, excerpts from Grażyna Bacewicz’s Violin Quartet, and music by Jean Françaix and Astor Piazzolla arranged for cello ensemble. The Naantali Music Festival’s artists will perform in ensembles of various sizes together with the outstanding young musicians of the String Academy.
AILI IKONEN & TURKU JAZZ ORCHESTRA — ELLA!
The second part of the park concert celebrates the American jazz legend Ella Fitzgerald.. The soloist is singer Aili Ikonen, known not only for her extensive solo career but also as a composer and a member of the vocal ensemble Rajaton.Ikonen will perform songs made famous by the jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald together with the Turku Jazz Orchestra. The programme includes ballads, bebop numbers, and Latin rhythms, such as How High the Moon and Lullaby of Broadway.
EVERGREEN FILM CLASSICS
The programme includes evergreen jazz classics performed in Finnish as well as beloved Finnish film classics, such as “Kellä kulta, sillä onni,” made famous by Laila Kinnunen. tunnetuksi tekemä ”Kellä kulta, sillä onni”. Kokonaisuuden ovat kuratoineet Jazz City Turun toiminnanjohtaja The programme has been curated by Jussi Fredriksson, Executive Director of Jazz City Turku, together with Aili Ikonen. The big band arrangements are by Turku Jazz Orchestra’s conductor Vellu Halkosalmi. The concert lasts approximately one hour and twenty minutes
and will be performed without an intermission.
PRESIDENTIAN COUPLE HOSTING THE PART CONCERT
The President of the Republic, Alexander Stubb, and his spouse Suzanne Innes-Stubb hosted the Kultaranta concert for the first time in 2025 and will continue the tradition on 13 June 2026.
The Kultaranta Park Concert has become an established part of the Naantali Music Festival programme and is one of the most anticipated events of the summer.
- The Naantali Music Festival is honoured to continue its cooperation with Kultaranta and the Office of the President of the Republic. “The gardens of Kultaranta, in their elegant splendour, are a truly inspiring setting—not only for the audience but also for us artists,” says Elina Vähälä, Artistic Director of the Naantali Music Festival.
All Presidents of the Republic of Finland, beginning with Urho Kaleva Kekkonen, have served as patrons of the Naantali Music Festival. The Naantali Music Festival was founded in 1980, and this year the festival will be celebrated for the 46th time.
EI KULTARANTAA RAKKAAMPAA!
13.6.2026 klo 14 Ei Kultarantaa rakkaampaa –
The ticket sale will start on 26.2.2026 at noon in lippu.fi The concert is weather dependent. In case of bad weather, the concert will be moved to the Maijamäki Sports Hall in Naantali. Any change will be announced on the morning of 13 June: www.naantalinmusiikkijuhlat.fi
Additional information
Emma Anttila
Managing director
Naantali Music Festival
+358453112236
[email protected]
www.naantalinmusiikkijuhlat.fi
