Esa Ruuttunen is a unique artist who has combined theology and music in his career. He initially studied theology and worked for ten years as a pastor at the Temppeliaukio Church in Helsinki. At the same time, he completed his vocal diploma at the Sibelius Academy under the guidance of Professor Matti Lehtinen and gradually transitioned into a full-time opera
singer.
Ruuttunen was a soloist at the Finnish National Opera from 1987 to 2005 and performed for over two decades at the Savonlinna Opera Festival. He has also sung in Berlin, Vienna, and London, as well as at music festivals in Bregenz, the Canary Islands, and Buenos Aires. In addition, he has appeared in concerts and lied recitals across Europe, the United States, Canada, Japan, and Russia.
His repertoire of over 50 roles includes Wagner’s Wotan, the Flying Dutchman, and Alberich, Puccini’s Scarpia, Enescu’s Oedipe, and Kokkonen’s Paavo Ruotsalainen. In recent years, he has remained active in Finland, and in 2024 performed music set to Ilmari Kianto’s poetry in musical monologues by Risto Vähäsarja and Panu Rajala.
Ruuttunen is also known as a respected interpreter of sacred music. He has received the Pro Finlandia Medal (2001), the Romanian Order of Cultural Merit (2004), the Cross of Mikael
Agricola (2012), and the Finnish Lutheran Cultural Foundation Award (2021). In 2000, he was named Artist of the Year at the Savonlinna Opera Festival. A biography of his career, Oopperapappi ("The Opera Priest") by Pekka Hako, was published in 2007.
