Finnish cellist Joona Pulkkinen has performed as a soloist with numerous orchestras, such as the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Chamber Orchestra of Wallonia, Brussel’s La Monnaie Orchestra and Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra. He has performed at several important Scandinavian music festivals and in many great European concert halls, including Brussels' Palais des Beaux-Arts, Paris' Auditorium Fondation Louis Vuitton and Amsterdam's Concertgebouw. In the fall of 2022, Pulkkinen started his work as a lecturer of cello at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.

Pulkkinen was selected as an artist for the Classe d'Excellence de Violoncelle program in Paris under the guidance of Gautier Capuçon for the 2015–2016 season. Other teachers of Pulkkinen include Gary Hoffman, Marko Ylönen and Pauli Heikkinen.

Pulkkinen won the 3rd prize in the national Turku cello competition as the youngest participant of the finals in 2010. He worked as the 1st solo cellist of the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra in 2014–2023. Pulkkinen has also worked as a substituting solo cellist for Avanti! Chamber Orchestra, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, among others.

Joona Pulkkinen plays a rare Davide Pizzorno cello from 1769 and a Pierre Simon bow from 1855.