Johannes Moser

Johannes Moser [cello]

Hailed by Gramophone Magazine as “one of the finest among the astonishing gallery of young virtuoso cellists”, German-Canadian cellist Johannes Moser has performed with the world’s leading orchestras such as the Berliner Philharmoniker, New York Philharmonic, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, BBC Philharmonic at the Proms, London Symphony, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Tokyo NHK Symphony, Philadelphia and Cleveland Orchestras with conductors of the highest level including Riccardo Muti, Lorin Maazel, Mariss Jansons, Valery Gergiev, Zubin Mehta, Vladimir Jurowski, Franz Welser-Möst, Christian Thielemann, Pierre Boulez, Paavo Jarvi, Semyon Bychkov, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and Gustavo Dudamel.

In 2017 Johannes won his 3rd ECHO Klassik award as ‘Instrumentalist of the Year’ for his Russian Recital disk on the label PENTATONE, for whom he records exclusively. His recordings include the concertos by Dvořák, Lalo, Elgar and Tchaikovsky, which have gained him the prestigious Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik and the Diapason d’Or. November 2018 will see the release of his next disc on the label, featuring the Lutoslawski and Dutilleux concertos recorded with the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin under the baton of Thomas Søndergård.

In the 2018/19 season Johannes will be Artist-in-Residence with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and the Oregon Symphony, undertaking a diverse range of projects including concerto and solo performances, education and outreach activities and a chamber orchestra tour directed from the cello.

Other highlights of the season include Johannes’ debut with the Wiener Philharmoniker and Oslo Philharmonic orchestras, the World and European Premières of Andrew Norman’s cello concerto with the San Francisco Symphony and Orquesta Sinfónica de Castilla y León respectively, and returns to orchestras including the Los Angeles Philharmonic and Atlanta Symphony. Australasia also features highly this season and sees Johannes tour with the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra in October performing Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1 with Peter Oundjian plus a selection of the Bach Cello Suites in recital, followed later in the season by concerts at the Australian Festival of Chamber Music, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and in recital at the Sydney Opera House.

A dedicated chamber musician, Johannes has performed with Emanuel Ax, Joshua Bell, Jonathan Biss, James Ehnes, Vadim Gluzman, Leonidas Kavakos, Midori, Menahem Pressler and Yevgeny Sudbin. This season he will appear in recital with pianist Till Fellner in North America. Johannes is also a regular at festivals including the Verbier, Schleswig-Holstein, Gstaad and Kissinger festivals, the Mehta Chamber Music Festival, and the Colorado, Seattle and Brevard music festivals.

Renowned for his efforts to expand the reach of the classical genre, as well as his passionate focus on new music, Johannes has recently been heavily involved in commissioning works by Julia Wolfe, Ellen Reid, Thomas Agerfeld Olesen, Johannes Kalitzke, Jelena Firsowa and Andrew Norman. In 2011 he premiered Magnetar for electric cello by Enrico Chapela with the Los Angeles Philharmonic conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, and in the following season he continued this relationship with the orchestra performing Michel van der Aa’s cello concerto Up-close. Throughout his career, Johannes has been committed to reaching out to all audiences, from kindergarten to college and beyond. He combines most of his concert engagements with masterclasses, school visits and preconcert lectures.

Born into a musical family in 1979, Johannes began studying the cello at the age of eight and became a student of Professor David Geringas in 1997. He was the top prize winner at the 2002 Tchaikovsky Competition, in addition to being awarded the Special Prize for his interpretation of the Rococo Variations. In 2014 he was awarded with the prestigious Brahms prize.

A voracious reader of everything from Kafka to Collins, and an avid outdoorsman, Johannes Moser is a keen hiker and mountain biker in what little spare time he has.

Johannes Moser plays on an Andrea Guarneri Cello from 1694 from a private collection.

His website