Biography

Johanna Nylund is an up-and-coming finnish soprano based in Copenhagen. Season 2023-2024 brings two role debuts in her home country: Donna Anna in Don Giovanni (Mozart) and Adele in Die Fledermaus (J. Strauss II), both at the Finnish National Opera, where she previously sang Pamina in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte. She will also make her debut with the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra singing the soprano solo part in Bent Sørensen’s new Saint Matthew Passion in it’s danish premiere.

See her calendar here.

In the summer 2023 Nylund will sing Clorinda in Rossini’s Cenerentola at Opera Hedeland, where she previously sang Gilda in Mini-Rigoletto (Verdi). Her other opera roles include Nella in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi at the Copenhagen Operafestival, Pamina in Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte at the Finnish National Opera and Lìu in Puccini’s Turandot in Alexander Theatre, Helsinki.

Nylund has gained recognizion in the Nordics. She was the recipient of the prestigious Barbro Salén scholarship in Stockholm and one of the Léonie Sonning talent prize recipients in Copenhagen in 2022. See her interview and music video here.

Nylund has been a soloist with different Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, such as Århus Symphony Orchestra, Mikkeli City Orchestra, Pori Sinfonietta, Odense Symphony Orchestra, Oulu Chamber Orchestra and Vermont Philharmonic Orchestra. She has worked with Thomas Søndergård, Marc Soustrot, Jean Thorel, Nathanaël Iselin and Geoffrey Paterson among others. Her repertoire includes for example Carmina Burana by Carl Orff. Fauré’s Requiem, Mozart’s Great Mass in C-minor and Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem.

See her full repertoire here.

Nylund’s repertoire includes also contemporary music. She performed Kaija Saariaho’s Leino songs with DKDM’s Symphony Orchestra and Nico Muhly’s How Little You Are with DKDM Guitar Ensemble and DKDM Chamber Choir. She sang the role of Dalloway in Kirsten Milenko’s opera Dalloway (2020) in it’s first public performance at Pulsar festival in Copenhagen. She also sang Virginia Woolf in Mathias Vestergård’s opera Titanic, and Mother of Lemminkäinen in The Canine Kalevala (Koirien Kalevala) by Jaakko Kuusisto in Kuopio City Theatre.

Nylund performs Lied-repertoire as part of Duo Newbrook with pianist Johannes Stenberg Brooks. They received 3rd prize at the international Copenhagen Lied-Duo Competition in October 2019.

Nylund was a soloist in two Opera Gala -concerts with Vermont Philharmonic Orchestra after winning The Bel Canto Institute Orchestral Performance Award 2018 at the Bel Canto Institute’s summer program in Florence. In July 2019 Nylund received a 3rd prize in Kangasniemi singing competition. She received a special prize of 1000 € at Lappeenranta Singing Competition in 2023.

Nylund studied her Bachelor degree in her native country Finland at Savonia University of Applied Sciences with Annastiina Tahkola. She finished her Master degree in singing at The Royal Danish Academy of Music in June 2019 with professor Eva Hess Thaysen as her teacher. She also graduated from Operahögskolan in Stockholm (Stockholm University of the Arts, Department of Opera) in the spring of 2022, studying with Robert Hyman. She graduated from the Soloist class of The Royal Danish Academy of Music in the fall of 2022.

Nylund has also studied with Helene Gjerris in Copenhagen and Rita Susovsky in Trieste where she spent eight months as an exchange student. She has participated in masterclasses with Barbara Hannigan, Bo Skovhus, Susanna Eken, Anne Magrethe Dahl, Topi Lehtipuu, Neville Dove and Soile Isokoski among others.

Nylund is a native Finnish speaker. In addition she speaks English, Italian, Danish and sings also in Swedish, Danish, German, Czech, Russian and French.

Nylund has received support for her studies also from Den Bøhmske Fond and Augustinus Fonden.