British cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason is in great demand from major orchestras and concert halls worldwide. He became a household name in 2018 after performing at the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at Windsor Castle, with his performance watched by nearly 2 billion people globally.
He initially garnered renown as the winner of the 2016 BBC Young Musician competition and subsequently became a Decca Classics recording artist. His latest album, “Song,” showcases his lyrical playing in a wide selection of arrangements and collaborations. His 2020 album of Elgar works reached No. 8 in the United Kingdom Official Classical Album Chart, making him the first ever cellist to reach the U.K. Top 10. Sheet music collections of his performance repertoire, along with his own arrangements and works, are published by Faber.
In the 22-23 season, he appears as artist-in-residence with the Philharmonia Orchestra, performing three concertos across the year, along with presenting chamber music and giving educational workshops. He also performs with orchestras such as the London Mozart Players, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Royal Northern Sinfonia, Camerata Salzburg, Hallé Orchestra and Royal Scottish National Orchestra.
In the Americas, he appears as soloist with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Toronto Symphony, Boston Symphony, São Paulo Symphony and on tour with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. He also performs his first solo cello recital program in venues such as Wigmore Hall London, National Concert Hall Dublin, Palau de la Música Catalana Barcelona, Auditorio Nacional de Música Madrid, Musée du Louvre Paris and De Doelen Rotterdam; he returns to the Dortmund Konzerthaus as one of its Junge Wilde artists.
Since his debut in 2017, Kanneh-Mason has performed every summer at the BBC Proms, including in 2020 when he gave a recital performance with his sister, Isata, to an empty auditorium due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He was selected to appear in the coveted role as guest soloist at the 2022 Last Night of the Proms with the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
A graduate of London’s Royal Academy of Music, where he studied with Hannah Roberts, he was appointed in May 2022 as the academy’s first Menuhin Visiting Professor of Performance Mentoring. He is an ambassador for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, Future Talent and Music Masters. Kanneh-Mason was appointed a Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire in the 2020 New Year’s Honors List. He plays a Matteo Goffriller cello from 1700, which is on indefinite loan to him.
Please note: Biographies are based on information provided to the CSO by the artists or their representatives. More current information may be available on websites of the artists or their management.
