Matthew Hakkarainen became the first American violinist to be awarded first prize at the Premio Rodolfo Lipizer International Violin Competition, in Gorizia, Italy, where he also received three special prizes for “a young, deserving talent,” the best interpretation of a 19th century sonata, and the best interpretation of a 19th century concerto. He received his Bachelor of Music from the Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Pamela Frank, and a Master of Music from the Juilliard School, studying with Sylvia Rosenberg and Ronald Copes. Previous teachers Matthew has studied with include Charles Castleman, Mauricio Fuks, Borislava Iltcheva, Huifang Chen, and Maree Sawhney.

In 2013, Matthew was a finalist at the Louis Spohr Competition for Young Violinists held in Weimar, Germany. He won the Music Teachers’ National Association (MTNA) Southern Division Junior Performance Competition the following year. In 2018, he won first place in the New World Symphony’s Concerto Competition and performed Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto with Michael Tilson Thomas and the New World Symphony. Later that year, Matthew served as Concertmaster of the National Youth Orchestra of the United States of America for its concert tour in Asia, again under the baton of Michael Tilson Thomas. In 2021, he was a semifinalist in the Tibor Varga International Violin Competition. This past summer, he won the Aspen Music Festival and School’s Violin Competition, and performed as a soloist with the Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra. He was Concertmaster of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra for its 2021-2022 season, and is Associate Concertmaster of Symphony in C. He has also appeared several times as a Substitute Violin with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and as Substitute Principal Second Violin with the Princeton Symphony Orchestra.

Matthew has been featured on National Public Radio’s “From the Top,” and has performed as a guest artist at FestivalSouth. In 2019, he went on a solo recital tour across three towns in Northern Italy. Matthew has appeared as a soloist with the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra, Jacksonville Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica Bulgaria Classic di Plovdiv, Acadiana Symphony Orchestra, New River Orchestra, and others. Festivals he has attended include the Aspen Music Festival and School (as a New Horizons Fellow studying with Kathleen Winkler), Castleman Quartet Program, Sardinia International Master Class, Orford Musique, Ferme de Villefavard Summer Academy, Meadowmount School of Music, Music@Menlo Chamber Music Institute, and Indiana University Jacobs School of Music Summer Program. He also attended the Music Academy of the West as the recipient of a William Hymanson Endowed Full Scholarship in Violin, awarded to those participating in the Concertmaster Program led by Glenn Dicterow. Additionally, Matthew has played in masterclasses for esteemed artists including Zvi Zeitlin, Gordon Nikolić, Gerardo Ribeiro, Roman Simović, Vadim Gluzman, Alexander Sitkovetsky, and others.

Outside of music, Matthew is also notable for his academic achievements as a National Merit Scholarship recipient, a Kovner Opportunity Scholar, and a Sunshine State Scholar.