Reetta Näätänen (Master of Music, Bachelor of Arts)

works as a clarinetist in Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra (2001-) and is a doctoral researcher in the University of the Arts Helsinki, Sibelius Academy (2022-). She is also a member of TampereRaw contemporary music ensemble and regularly performs with kantele artist Eva Alkula as a duo. Näätänen studied East Asian Studies, majoring Japanese language and culture, in University of Helsinki (1994-2001) as well as musical performance in Sibelius Academy (1997-2003). She has always been drawn to East Asian cultures and noticed that East Asia also inspires many composers. Her research deals with the importance of cultural intelligence and sensitivity, especially in the field of contemporary Western music with cross-cultural references. The research aims to find out whether orientalism and remnants of a colonialist mindset can still be detected in contemporary music when foreign, distant cultures are used as source material. How can performers increase their perception of cultural inequalities and cultural sensitivity to the music they perform?