# Tarja Turunen
**Tarja Turunen** (full name Tarja Soile Susanna Turunen Cabuli) is a Finnish lyric soprano, songwriter, and composer, best known as a co-founder and the original lead vocalist of the symphonic metal band [Nightwish](https://www.edgepedia.org/nightwish) from 1996 to 2005 and since then as a solo artist working across metal and classical music.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name | Tarja Soile Susanna Turunen Cabuli[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Tarja_Turunen/2309) |
| Born | 1977, Kitee, Finland[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Tarja_Turunen/2309) |
| Nightwish | Co-founder and vocalist, 1996–2005; featured on Angels Fall First (1997), Oceanborn (1998), Wishmaster (2000), Century Child (2002), Once (2004), and others[2](https://www.nightwish.com/band/tarja) |
| Departure | Dismissed via an open letter from Tuomas Holopainen, delivered after the final show of the Once Upon A Tour in Helsinki in October 2005[3](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/biographies/celebrating-30-years-of-nightwish) |
| Solo debut | My Winter Storm (2007), released in more than 80 countries; Gold in Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Germany, Platinum in Finland and Russia[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/) |
| Latest album | Frisson Noir, tenth studio album, released June 12, 2026 via earMUSIC[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/) • [5](https://www.kerrang.com/album-review-tarja-frisson-noir) |
| Television | Coach on The Voice of Finland in 2015 and 2016, leading her team to victory in both seasons[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/) |
## Origins and classical training
Turunen grew up in the village of Puhos in Kitee, in North Karelia, Finland[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Tarja_Turunen/2309). She studied singing at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, where she trained as a lyric soprano, and later continued her vocal studies in Germany at the Musikhochschule Karlsruhe, taking courses with Mitsuko Shirai[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Tarja_Turunen/2309) • [6](https://www.universal-music.de/tarja/biografie). A childhood friend, [Tuomas Holopainen](https://www.edgepedia.org/tuomas-holopainen), and guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, both from the same town, later recalled hearing her sing at school, where she imitated her idol [Whitney Houston](https://www.edgepedia.org/whitney-houston) before classical training transformed her voice[7](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/the-story-of-symphonic-metal-within-temptation-nightwish).
## Nightwish, 1996–2005
In July 1996, Holopainen conceived Nightwish as a solo project of atmospheric "mood music" built on acoustic guitars, flutes, strings, piano, and female vocals; Vuorinen and Turunen soon joined[8](https://www.nightwish.com/band). After a demo recorded in early 1997 attracted Spinefarm Records, the debut album *Angels Fall First* was released in November 1997 and reached number 31 on the Finnish charts, with the single "The Carpenter" reaching the Top Ten[8](https://www.nightwish.com/band).
The combination of metal guitars with her operatic soprano became the band's defining sound and helped define symphonic metal as a genre[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). She was featured on the band's albums through 2005: *Angels Fall First* (September 1997), *Oceanborn* (May 1998), *Wishmaster* (May 2000), *From Wishes To Eternity* (May 2001), *Century Child* (April 2002), *End Of Innocence* (October 2003), and *[Once](https://www.edgepedia.org/once-nightwish-album)* (May 2004)[2](https://www.nightwish.com/band/tarja). *Once* reached number one in Norway, Finland, Slovenia, Greece, and Germany[6](https://www.universal-music.de/tarja/biografie), and its worldwide success made the band stars[9](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/interviews/tarja-turunen-interview-2026). During the Nightwish years she also maintained a parallel classical career, performing Wagner and Verdi with the Savonlinna Opera Festival Choir, appearing as a soloist in a ballet production of the Finnish National Opera, and singing in the Noche Escandinava tour of South America and Romania[6](https://www.universal-music.de/tarja/biografie).
**The dismissal.** On the night of October 21, 2005, immediately after the final show of the Once Upon A Tour in Helsinki, the band delivered a letter to Turunen accusing her of putting her solo career above Nightwish and telling her she was fired[3](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/biographies/celebrating-30-years-of-nightwish). The Encyclopaedia Metallum dates the dismissal letter to October 22, 2005, and states it was written by Holopainen and signed by the other members[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Tarja_Turunen/2309). The live DVD *End Of An Era* (May 2006) documented her final period with the band[2](https://www.nightwish.com/band/tarja). In a 2026 interview, Turunen said of the ending, "I probably should have put them through hell. I had all my rights, there were contracts"[9](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/interviews/tarja-turunen-interview-2026).
## Solo career
Her solo rock career began with *My Winter Storm*, released internationally by Universal Music in 2007 in more than 80 countries; it earned Gold Record Awards in Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Germany, and Platinum Record Awards in Finland and Russia[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). It was followed by *What Lies Beneath* (2010), *Colours in the Dark* (2013), *The Brightest Void* and *The Shadow Self* (2016), and *In The Raw* (2019)[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). Recording under her first name, *[Frisson Noir](https://www.edgepedia.org/frisson-noir)* (2026) is her tenth studio album[10](https://www.musicconnection.com/frisson-noir-by-tarja/).
**Classical and Christmas work.** Since 2005 her traditional Christmas concerts have been a fixture of her schedule; her first Christmas album, *Henkäys Ikuisuudesta*, achieved double Platinum in Finland[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). She released the classical album *Ave Maria – En Plein Air* in 2015, the dark-Christmas concept *From Spirits and Ghosts (Score for a Dark Christmas)* in 2017, and its sequel *Dark Christmas* in 2023[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). She has also performed in crossover projects such as Beauty and the Beat with drummer Mike Terrana, pairing Puccini, Mozart, and Bach with [Led Zeppelin](https://www.edgepedia.org/led-zeppelin) and Queen[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/).
**Live career.** She has performed over one thousand shows worldwide, including a set before approximately 500,000 people at [Woodstock](https://www.edgepedia.org/woodstock) in Poland, and the Shadow Shows world tour alone covered 40 countries in more than 200 concerts[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). Live releases include *Act I*, *Luna Park Ride*, and *Act II*[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/).
**Frisson Noir.** Released on June 12, 2026 via earMUSIC, *Frisson Noir* was finalized in January and February 2026 and is billed as her heaviest album[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/) • [9](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/interviews/tarja-turunen-interview-2026). It was her first metal-focused studio album in seven years, since 2019's *In The Raw*[11](https://www.loudersound.com/music-industry/magazines/pre-order-our-exclusive-tarja-frisson-noir-bundle-now). Guests include her former Nightwish bandmate Marko Hietala, the cello metal band [Apocalyptica](https://www.edgepedia.org/apocalyptica), Cradle of Filth frontman [Dani Filth](https://www.edgepedia.org/dani-filth), and [Red Hot Chili Peppers](https://www.edgepedia.org/red-hot-chili-peppers) drummer Chad Smith; the album was produced by Tarja and Mic, mixed by Neal Avron, and mastered by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). Reviews were broadly positive but divided on the songwriting: Kerrang! rated it 3/5, calling it "easily the heaviest thing she's done" while finding some songs overproduced[5](https://www.kerrang.com/album-review-tarja-frisson-noir), and the German site metal.de placed it near the top of her discography[12](https://www.metal.de/reviews/tarja-frisson-noir-616277/).
## Personal life and recognition
Turunen has been married to Marcelo Cabuli since 2002; their daughter Naomi Cabuli Turunen was born in 2012[1](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Tarja_Turunen/2309). Nominations came her way from Finland's Emma Award and Germany's Echo Award, and she made history as the first solo artist from Finland to earn a Gold Record in Germany[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/). Beyond music, she published the book *Singing In My Blood* ([Rocket 88](https://www.edgepedia.org/rocket-88), 2021), created during the COVID-19 pandemic[4](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/).
In 2026 she disclosed that she had survived a stroke, which she attributed to stress; afterward she learned reiki, attended therapy, and shortened her touring periods[9](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/interviews/tarja-turunen-interview-2026).
Her influence on metal remains visible. A scholarly chapter on gender and heaviness in metal describes her operatic tone with Nightwish as "the most iconic example" of classically trained female vocals in the genre[13](https://academic.oup.com/book/62310/chapter/552774228), and in 2026, with [Floor Jansen](https://www.edgepedia.org/floor-jansen)'s departure from Nightwish making headlines, Metal Hammer noted that Turunen "continues to prove there's life after playing in symphonic metal's biggest band"[14](https://www.loudersound.com/music/tracks-singles/best-new-metal-songs-tarja-turunen-heilung-blackgold).
## References
1. [Tarja Turunen – Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives](https://www.metal-archives.com/artists/Tarja_Turunen/2309)
2. [Tarja Turunen – Nightwish Official Website](https://www.nightwish.com/band/tarja)
3. [Tuomas Holopainen reflects on 30 years of Nightwish, Louder](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/biographies/celebrating-30-years-of-nightwish)
4. [Tarja Turunen – Short Bio, tarjaturunen.com](https://tarjaturunen.com/short-bio/)
5. [Album review: Tarja – Frisson Noir, Kerrang!](https://www.kerrang.com/album-review-tarja-frisson-noir)
6. [Tarja – Biografie, Universal Music Deutschland](https://www.universal-music.de/tarja/biografie)
7. [How symphonic metal started: Within Temptation, Nightwish and more, Louder](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/the-story-of-symphonic-metal-within-temptation-nightwish)
8. [Band – Nightwish Official Website](https://www.nightwish.com/band)
9. ["I probably should've put them through hell." Tarja reflects on her public dismissal from Nightwish in 2005, Louder/Metal Hammer](https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/interviews/tarja-turunen-interview-2026)
10. ["Frisson Noir" by Tarja, Music Connection](https://www.musicconnection.com/frisson-noir-by-tarja/)
11. [Pre-order our exclusive Tarja Frisson Noir bundle now, Louder/Prog](https://www.loudersound.com/music-industry/magazines/pre-order-our-exclusive-tarja-frisson-noir-bundle-now)
12. [Tarja – Frisson Noir review, metal.de](https://www.metal.de/reviews/tarja-frisson-noir-616277/)
13. [Angels and Demons: Hearing Gender and Heaviness in Metal's Fantastical Vocals, Oxford Academic](https://academic.oup.com/book/62310/chapter/552774228)
14. [Metal Hammer's Tracks Of The Week: October 16 2026, Louder](https://www.loudersound.com/music/tracks-singles/best-new-metal-songs-tarja-turunen-heilung-blackgold)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Individual musical biographies › Rock, metal, and popular-band musicians › Heavy metal › Heavy metal vocalists*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license