“A conductor is at his best in his 70s. Everything before that is just learning.” – Hannu Lintu
Hannu Lintu saunters into the room. With his sharp movements and, as we soon find out, even sharper wit, it is difficult not to feel intimidated. He has an undeniable presence and one suspects Lintu—the newly appointed music director of the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO)—knows exactly what effect he has on others.
This is, after all, a man who has spent much of his life holding the attention of entire concert halls. The Finnish conductor has led some of the world’s most distinguished orchestras, including the Berlin Philharmonic, Boston Symphony Orchestra, and Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, while holding major leadership positions with the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Finnish National Opera and Ballet.
Singapore audiences are now beginning to experience that authority for themselves. Lintu opened his inaugural season with the SSO with an ambitious repertoire, moving between contemporary compositions and some of the most imposing works in the classical canon, including Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 5, Richard Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra, and Béla Bartók’s Bluebeard’s Castle.
Such breadth feels characteristic of Hannu Lintu’s approach to classical music. He is known for studying a score down to the smallest relationships between notes: how their length, articulation, and phrasing can change the character of an entire orchestra. Conducting may sometimes appear inscrutable from the other side of the concert hall, but Lintu describes it as the intricate work of connecting past and future, understanding what a composer intended, while finding a convincing way for that music to live in the present.
Perhaps this explains why, despite deciding at just 12 years old that he would become a conductor, Lintu speaks little about mastery. Music, he says, continues to teach him something every day. For someone who has spent a lifetime shaping how music is heard, Hannu Lintu remains just as interested in listening.
What quality do you value most in the people you work with?
The ability to communicate through music instead of words. In general, I think people talk too much.
What is something you’ve changed your mind about?
That you could control your future. This, I realise, is just not possible. You should let things happen and live accordingly.
Tell us about a book or conversation that has stayed with you.
I’m lucky because conductors meet fascinating people all the time. They all have given me something to cherish. Same with books. But let’s say I will always return to Shakespeare and Dostoevsky for wisdom.
What’s one habit that has had an impact on your life?
Learning to organise my day. When I wake up in the morning, I make a schedule for the day and try to stick to that. I don’t even idle if it’s not planned.
What’s something you’re still trying to improve?
Everything. A conductor is at his best in his 70s. Everything before that is just learning.
What do you enjoy doing when no one expects anything from you?
The problem is that even when no one is around, I’m still expecting things from myself, whether it’s about physical exercise, reading a book, or just spending a free day between concerts.
What’s one piece of advice you find yourself giving again and again?
You are not ready. Continue learning.
Photography by Eugene Lee of Enfinite / Hair & Makeup by Sveta Klyn of Suburbs Studio