page_title: Lahti
section_title: Culture
hierarchical_section_title: Lahti / Culture
caption_attribution_description: English: Church of The Cross, Lahti, Finland. Designed by architect Alvar Aalto, completed in 1978.Suomi: Ristinkirkko, Lahti. Suunnittelija arkkitehti Alvar Aalto, valmistunut 1978.
context_page_description: Lahti is a city and municipality in Finland. It is the capital of the region of Päijänne Tavastia and its growing region is one of the main economic hubs of Finland. Lahti is situated on a bay at the southern end of lake Vesijärvi about 100 kilometres north-east of the capital Helsinki. It is also situated at the intersection of Highway 4 and Highway 12, which are the most significant main roads of Lahti.
  In English, the Finnish word Lahti literally means bay. Lahti is also dubbed the "Chicago of Finland" due to the premise of both cities, when they were known as "slaughterhouse cities". Also, the troubled history of both cities in the field of crime has been seen as one of the similarities.
  The coat of arms of the city depicts a train wheel surrounded by flames.
context_section_description: Lahti harbors cultural ambitions, manifested notably in the construction of a large congress and concert centre, the Sibelius Hall (2000) by architects Kimmo Lintula and Hannu Tikka. Lahti has one of Finland's most widely known symphony orchestras, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra (Sinfonia Lahti ), based at the Sibelius Hall, which performs both classical and popular music, notably concentrating on music by Jean Sibelius. The orchestra has won several well respected international prizes.
  Lahti's annual music festival programme includes such events as Lahti Organ Festival, a jazz festival held in the city's market square and the Sibelius Festival.
  In addition to the Sibelius Hall, other additional notable works of architecture in Lahti are the City Hall (1911) by Eliel Saarinen, the Church of the Cross (1978) by Alvar Aalto, Nastola Church (1804), the oldest church in the city, the City Theatre (1983) by Pekka Salminen, the City Library (1990) by Arto Sipinen, the Piano Pavilion (2008) by Gert Wingårdh, and the Travel Centre (2016) by JKMM Architects. The City of Lahti has also acted as the host city for the international Spirit of Wood Architecture Award, established in Finland in 1999. Some of the prize-winners have received commissions to design small structures in the city; these include small works by Japanese architect Kengo Kuma and Australian architect Richard Leplastrier.
caption: Church of The Cross
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