Arto Noras, whose father was principal bassoonist of the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, showed a precocious talent and at the age of eight was accepted at the Sibelius Academy. He later became a pupil of Paul Tortelier in Paris, after which he won a number of high-profile awards. Noras divides his time between teaching, solo work, and chamber music playing, and one of his greatest accomplishments is the founding of the Naantali Music Festival, where he is also artistic director. His rôle in the Sibelius Academy Quartet (of which the other members are Seppo Tukiainen and Erkki Kantola, violins and Veikko Kosonen, viola) affords him an element of balance in his performance activities: he has spoken of the more democratic ideal of playing chamber music an...