Perttu Kivilaakso

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Perttu Päivö Kullervo Kivilaakso (born 11 May 1978 in Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish cellist and composer who plays with the metal band Apocalyptica. He studied at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and uses a German 19th‑century cello. He started playing cello at age five and joined Apocalyptica for their Cult album. He first played with the band in 1995, paused to focus on his studies, and returned in 1999, swapping places with Antero Manninen.

In 1996, at 18, he won third place in the Paulo Cello Competition. He later earned a lifetime chair at the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, where his father Juhani is also a cellist; he left the orchestra in 2007 to tour with Apocalyptica. He has written music for Max Payne 2 and for Apocalyptica songs such as "Conclusion", "Farewell", and "Beautiful". With bandmate Eicca Toppinen, he co-wrote Indigo, his first opera, which premiered at the Finnish National Opera on 22 January 2016. The opera tells a story about a powerful multinational company and the search for happiness.