Composer
Maija Ruuskanen
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introduction
Maija Ruuskanen is a composer, pianist, and music theatre professional whose work brings music and the performing arts together. Born in Savonlinna, Finland, Ruuskanen began her professional relationship with opera at an early age, working as a pianist at the Savonlinna Opera Festival.
Ruuskanen is interested in crossing artistic boundaries and creating large-scale works. She enjoys collaborating with artists from different disciplines, and her music extends beyond opera and theatre into the worlds of dance, circus, physical theatre, and radio drama. Her work as a pianist, conductor, and performer gives her compositional practice a close connection to the stage, performers, and audiences.
Movement and physicality are an integral part of Ruuskanen’s approach to the stage. Her studies in dance and extensive work with movement and performance have deepened this relationship. This is also reflected in her collaborations with Teatteri Metamorfoosi, which specialises in physical and multidisciplinary theatre, and with Dance Theatre Hurjaruuth’s Winter Circus productions. Ruuskanen graduated with a Master of Music degree from the Sibelius Academy in 2006.
Ruuskanen is particularly interested in music’s ability to shape the emotional dramaturgy of the stage and to convey powerful emotions. A composition can sustain the dramatic arc of an entire performance, open up the inner worlds of its characters, or take expression beyond the reach of words. Her theatre compositions include music for The Lehman Trilogy (Lehman-trilogia), Itseen kirjoitettu, and Nämä juhlat jatkuvat vielä.
In her own works for the stage, multidisciplinary artistic practice intersects with social and existential questions. The choral opera Herääminen (Awakening, 2017) explores themes of grace, hope, and forgiveness, while Äärimmäisyys (Extremity, 2021) combines opera with parkour and examines the climate crisis through the thinking of St Francis of Assisi.
Ruuskanen is currently supported by a five-year artist grant, allowing her to focus on her work as a composer. Alongside her artistic practice, she holds positions of trust within the music sector, working to promote equality and develop structures that better support artists.
Website: www.maijaruuskanen.com
Instagram: @maijaruu