Markus Tapio was born in Helsinki and educated as a cellist at the Sibelius-Academy before moving to Basel in 1986. At the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis he studied the viola da gamba with Jordi Savall and the music of the fifteenth century with Dominique Vellard. In addition, he attended musicology classes at the University of Basel. Markus Tapio obtained his his solo performers diploma in 1991. As a specialist in early bowed instruments, Markus Tapio has performed and recorded extensively with ensembles such as Hesperion XX, Sequentia, Ensemble Gilles Binchois, Concordia viol consort, and Daedalus in which he is the principal viol player. In 1999, Markus Tapio was invited to become the artistic director of the Finnish Radio early music festival.