Linnea Hurttia is a distinguished concert violinist with a Master of Music degree from the Sibelius Academy and the University of Music, Drama, and Media Hannover. She won the 1st prize at the International H. Eller Violin Competition and has performed multiple times as a soloist with the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Jyväskylä Sinfonia, the City Orchestras of Lappeenranta and Hyvinkää and Sigyn Sinfonietta. Her performances have taken her to renowned venues, including the Wiener Musikverein, Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, Palau de la Música of Barcelona and the Helsinki Music Centre.
Linnea has studied with esteemed teachers such as Araik Resjan, Seppo Tukiainen and Ulf Schneider, and through masterclasses with leading musicians like Ilja Grubert, Zakhar Bron, Marco Rizzi, Gerhard Schultz, Philippe Koch, Shlomo Mintz, Philippe Graffin, Boris Garlitsky, Mihaela Martin, Vera Beths and Pavel Vernikov. Linnea studied chamber music extensively with Ralf Gothoni and Eldar Nebolsin at the International Institute of Chamber Music of Madrid, and she as well performed at masterclasses of Alban Berg Quartett, Juilliard Quartett and Engegård Quartett. Lately Linnea Hurttia has studied historical violin instruments with Susanne Scholz at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz.
She is the co-founder of the String Duo Kleio with her husband, violist Ivan Podyachev, and has appeared at festivals worldwide, including Schwetzinger Festival in Germany, Turku Music Festival and Avanti! Summer Sounds in Finland, and the Xiquitsi Festival in Mozambique, where she also led a masterclass. Since 2021, Linnea has been a key member of the artistic committee for the Lieto Chamber Music Days in Finland.
As a versatile musician, Linnea has premiered several new works, including Sampsa Ertamo’s Riddle (commissioned by the String duo Kleio, 2019) and Jüri Reinvere’s Piano Quartet (2015). Her playing was also heard in the Finnish Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo 2010. Additionally, Linnea frequently performs with period instruments, collaborating with early music ensembles, such as Bach Consort Wien and Ensemble Gamma Ut. From 2021 to 2023, she participated in a research project, funded by the City of Graz and the State of Styria, focused on reconstructing a Renaissance dance collection by the Hess brothers.
Linnea worked as concertmaster of the Lappeenranta City Orchestra and Saimaa Sinfonietta in Finland (2016-2021) and now holds a permanent position with the Kärntner Sinfonieorchester in Klagenfurt, Austria. She has been awarded grants by many Finnish foundation, such as Finnish Cultural Foundation.