World Famous Cellist to Perform at UW Cello Festival May 25

World famous cellist Steven Isserlis -- joined by acclaimed pianist Roman Rabinovich -- will present a cello recital at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 25, in the Buchanan Center for the Performing Arts concert hall.

Tickets are $23 for the public and $13 for students. A nominal processing fee will be charged for each ticket. To purchase tickets, visit the Performing Arts box office, call (307) 766-6666 or go online at www.tix.com/ticket-sales/uwyo/6984.

Isserlis and Rabinovich will present a program featuring Beethoven’s Cello Sonata No. 1, Op. 5, No. 1 and Cello Sonata No. 3, Op. 69; and Fauré’s Romance Op. 69 and Elegy Op. 24.

The duo’s recital is the grand finale of the UW Department of Music’s Cello Festival, which has become the largest such event in the Mountain West. This year’s festival has attracted 110 cellists from across the nation for a day of inspiration and community featuring masterclasses, lectures and workshops.

A free public cello choir concert is scheduled from 1-2 p.m. Sunday, May 25, in the Performing Arts concert hall. Isserlis will be featured as a soloist on one work.

Acclaimed worldwide for his profound musicianship and technical mastery, Isserlis enjoys a unique and distinguished career as a soloist, chamber musician, educator, author and broadcaster. He performs with the world’s greatest orchestras, from period to modern ensembles, and has given many world premieres, including pieces by Holliger, Kurtág, Mustonen, Tavener and Widmann.

Isserlis’s vast award-winning discography includes the complete JS Bach Cello Suites, Gramophone Instrumental Album of the Year; Beethoven’s complete works for cello and piano; the Brahms double concerto with Joshua Bell and the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields; and Grammy Award-nominated recordings of Haydn and Martinů.

He was awarded a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in 1998 in recognition of his service to music. His international recognition includes the Piatigorsky Prize (U.S.) and the Glashütte Original Music Festival Award (Germany). Since 1997, he has been artistic director of the International Musicians Seminar in Prussia Cove, Cornwall.

Isserlis plays the 1726 “Marquis de Corberon” Stradivarius cello, on loan from the Royal Academy of Music.

Hailed by The New York Times for his “uncommon sensitivity and feeling,” Rabinovich is recognized as among today’s most eloquent pianists. Winner of the 12th Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition, Rabinovich has performed on major stages across Europe and the U.S., including Gewandhaus, Carnegie Hall, Cité de la Musique, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Kennedy Center and Wigmore Hall.

Acclaimed for his distinctive performances of concertos spanning six centuries, Rabinovich is known for his interpretations of Haydn. He has performed as a soloist with leading orchestras such as the Royal Scottish National Orchestra; Scottish Chamber Orchestra; Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra; Orpheus Chamber Orchestra; Seattle Symphony; Calgary Philharmonic; Edmonton Symphony; Sarasota Orchestra; Meininger Hofkapelle; Orchestre de Chambre de Paris; NFM Leopoldinum; KBS Symphony; Prague Symphony; Buffalo Philharmonic; and all the major Israeli orchestras.

His recital appearances include Washington Performing Arts; Shriver Hall; Lincoln Center; Vancouver Recital Society; the Gilmore Keyboard Festival’s Rising Stars Series; and the Phillips Collection. He also has been featured at major festivals such as Marlboro; Ravinia; La Jolla Music Society; Dvořák Prague; Prague Spring; and the Ruhr Piano Festival.

The UW Cello Festival is supported, in part, by the Wyoming Arts Council, the UW College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s INREACH initiative and Eminent Artist funding.

For more information, contact UW Department of Music cello Professor Beth Vanderborgh at bvanderb@uwyo.edu.