The Finnish accordionist Janne Rättyä is widely regarded as one of the world’s the leading classical accordionists. In 2002, Rättyä debuted in the Chamber Hall of the Berlin Philharmonic (with the Debut Series of DeutschlandRadio Berlin), performing the first classical accordion recital ever presented there. He has also introduced his instrument to venues like Kyoto International Music Festival, Toppan Hall (Tokyo), Musashino Hall (Tokyo), Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, New York Synphony Space, Pacific Rim Festival (UCLA), Van Vlaanderen Festival, Ultraschall Festival Berlin, Konserthuset Stockholm, Harpa Reykjavik, Parco della Musica Rome, Styriarte Graz, Salzburger Aspekte and Wien Modern.

Rättyä has appeared alongside musicians such as Jorma Hynninen, Pekka Kuusisto, Christian Altenburger, and Patrick Demenga, to name a few.

He has performed as a soloist with many Finnish and foreign orchestras, including, among others, the Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra, the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, and the Tapiola Sinfonietta with conductors such as Martyn Brabbins and Sakari Oramo.

He has collaborated closely with composers such as Aldo Clementi, Dieter Schnebel, Kalevi Aho, Perttu Haapanen, Iris ter Schiphorst and Terry Riley, and has premiered more than 70 works. Three concertos were among these premieres: a concerto for accordion and ensemble by Gerhard Stäbler and two double concertos by Uljas Pulkkis (both premiered with the Ostrobothnian Chamber Orchestra).

Over the course of his studies at the Sibelius Academy with Prof. Matti Rantanen and at the Folkwang University of the Arts with Prof. Mie Miki, he was awarded numerous prizes in various international classical accordion and soloist competitions. Most notably, he received first prize in the Arrasate Hiria competition in Spain in 1996.

After completing his degrees, he taught both at the Sibelius Academy and at the Folkwang University of the Arts before becoming Professor of Classical Accordion Studies at the University of Music and Dramatic Arts in Graz, Austria, in 2003. In 2019, he was awarded the title of Docent (i.e. Adjunct Professor) by Sibelius Academy.

Janne Rättyä appears under the VMS Musical Treasures, Alba and Ondine record labels. His recordings have received multiple prizes, including a “CD of the Year 2014” recognition by the Finnish National Radio YLE.