Jarkko Hartikainen (b. 1981) is a composer striving to create works that explore what music is, and could still be, as an art form. He's researching the possibilities in sound through rigorous performer-collaboration as well as studying findings in a plethora of disciplines. Stimulating acoustic phenomena, exciting sonorities and concrete, bodily impulses through rhythm, resonance and empathy fuel his often extremely instrument-specific, concentrated writing.

Currently Jarkko Hartikainen is working as a commission-based freelance composer, as well as pursuing his D.Mus degree at the Sibelius Academy of Uniarts Helsinki. Violinist Eriikka Maalismaa, defunensemble, Tapiola Sinfonietta, Ensemble Adapter, McCormick Percussion Group, Ensemble Schwerpunkt, London Sinfonietta, Ensemble SurPlus, and other such distinguished performers have recently promoted his work.

Jarkko Hartikainen has been a profiled composer in Tallinn (Estonian Music Days) and Göttingen (StallArte festival), and his music has been performed at, among others, the Gaudeamus Muziekweek, Wittener Tage für neue Kammermusik, aDevantgarde festival, ‘Tactus Young Composers’ Forum, Musik 21 Niedersachsen, Nordic Music Days, Darmstadt Summer Courses, Time of Music festival in Viitasaari, Logos Foundation in Ghent, GAIDA festival in Vilnius, impuls Academy & Festival in Graz, Musica nova Helsinki, Tampere Biennale, and Fondation Royaumont. Professional composer/performer juries selected, anonymously, Hartikainen's music to represent Finland on seven consecutive years at the UNM festivals (for composers under 30), ambulating between the five Nordic countries. In addition, Hartikainen is a laureate of 'Tactus (with Astragal for orchestra) and winner of the shared 1st prize at the SävellYS composition award (with Hommage – variations for orchestra), as well as being the recipient of numerous smaller awards, grants and residencies. He has lived and worked in Helsinki, Frankfurt, Paris, Berlin, Wien, Rome, and Southern India.

In June 2012, Jarkko Hartikainen graduated M.Mus in Music Composition from the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki. Hartikainen’s most important mentors in addition to his main teacher Paavo Heininen (2002–08) include Chaya Czernowin (2010–17), Pierluigi Billone (2008–18), Beat Furrer (2008–12), Helmut Lachenmann (2006) and Marco Stroppa (2008–11), but he is grateful to have received expert advice from over 40 different colleagues on various masterclasses between 2004–2018.

Composer Jarkko Hartikainen’s work and studies have been supported by Taike (Arts Promotion Centre Finland), MES (The Finnish Music Foundation), Saari residence (Kone Foundation), Pro Musica Foundation (Finland), SKR (Finnish Cultural Foundation), Paulo Foundation (Finland), the Sibelius Fund, Madetoja Foundation, Music Finland, and the Sibelius Academy (Finland), among others. He occasionally works as a lecturer (Sibelius Academy) and a freelance writer for music journals and festivals. For more, including recordings and perusal scores, see: www.jarkkohartikainen.net