Helsinki Music Centre (Musiikkitalo)
The basics
While anyone can visit the lobby and café, you need to purchase a ticket to gain access to the performance spaces. Performances span genres from classical music to pop to jazz, and tickets can be booked in advance or at the door. If you’re on a tight budget, look out for tickets to rehearsals, which take place in advance of the main evening performance. Or check the center’s online calendar for free events, which may include meet-and-greets with musicians, student performances, and family-friendly concerts. Many hop-on hop-off bus tours—as well as bike and Segway tours—pass by the Helsinki Music Centre, while some architecture tours of Helsinki also stop at the center. In summer, the center hosts hour-long guided tours.
Things to know before you go
- Helsinki Music Centre is fully wheelchair-accessible.
- There is a café, terrace restaurant, and cloakroom at the center.
- Wear whatever you feel comfortable in—there is no dress code at the center.
- Most concerts have an intermission, which typically lasts for about 20 minutes.
How to get there
The Helsinki Music Centre sits opposite Parliament House (Eduskuntatalo) in Helsinki’s Töölö district. It is easily accessible by public transit: Helsinki Central Station is less than 10 minutes away. The nearest tram stops are the National Museum (Kansallismuseo) stop (served by lines 4 and 10) and Lasipalatsi (served by lines 1, 2, 4, and 10).
Trip ideas
When to get there
Performance spaces typically open about 20 minutes before the start time. Give yourself ample time to get there as late arrivals may have to wait until the interval to enter.
Art at the Helsinki Music Centre
Visitors to Helsinki Music Centre will encounter several artworks dotted around the grounds. Look for Kirsi Kaulanen’s Gaia sculpture—named after the Greek goddess of the Earth— is suspended from the ceiling of the main lobby, and for Reijo Hukkanen’s Laulupuut (Song Trees), a totem-like sculpture on the plaza outside the center, which depicts a giant pike reaching skyward with his sharp-toothed mouth wide open.
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- Museum of Contemporary Art Kiasma
- Parliament House of Finland (Eduskuntatalo)
- National Museum of Finland (Suomen Kansallismuseo)
- Finlandia Hall (Finlandiatalo)
- Amos Rex
- Helsinki Central Station
- HAM Helsinki Art Museum
- Tennis Palace (Tennispalatsi)
- Rock Church (Temppeliaukio Kirkko)
- Ateneum Art Museum (Konstmuseet Ateneum)
- Helsinki Swedish Theatre
- Port of Helsinki
- Helsinki Cathedral (Tuomiokirkko)
- Helsinki Senate Square (Senaatintori)
- Café Ursula