Cellist Nick Photinos named Eminent Scholar in Chamber Music at University of Cincinnati

Photinos succeeds pianist James Tocco, who held the position for thirty years

A recipient of four GRAMMY awards and the founder of Eighth Blackbird, cellist Nick Photinos will step into the role at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) on August 15, 2023.

In the Eminent Scholar in Chamber Music position, Photinos succeeds Professor Emeritus James Tocco, a distinguished pianist recently retired from CCM after thirty years of service.

An alumnus of the CCM, Nick Photinos is one of America's foremost advocates for contemporary music and has given hundreds of premiere performances. He is the founding cellist and co-Artistic Director of the contemporary music sextet Eighth Blackbird, which has premiered works by composers such as Steve Reich, David Lang, and Nico Muhly.

"I am incredibly excited and honored to return to CCM as Eminent Scholar in Chamber Music, the position previously held by James Tocco," said Photinos. "James was crucial to the early years of Eighth Blackbird, the ensemble I co-founded in 1996 and was with for 24 years."

"The members of Eighth Blackbird spent three years at CCM beginning in 1997...honing not just our craft but our lives as chamber musicians: rehearsing every weekday, having business meetings, working with composition, dance, and drama departments, curating concerts, entering competitions, and beginning to tour, all with the help and encouragement of the faculty. Eighth Blackbird formed at Oberlin, but we became professionals at CCM."

"Throughout its history, CCM has been privileged to count some of the world's most distinguished chamber musicians among its faculty and alumni," said Jonathan Kregor, CCM's Interim Dean. "Esteemed artists like James Tocco, the LaSalle Quartet, the Tokyo String Quartet and Percussion Group Cincinnati—to name but a few—helped to cement CCM's reputation on the international stage in the 20th century, and now contemporary ensembles like the Ariel Quartet along with numerous other faculty artists are carrying those traditions into bold new directions at our college."

"With this in mind, it is especially fitting that CCM's first new Eminent Scholar in Chamber Music in more than 30 years is a performer and master teacher with ties to the CCM family," he continued. "Nick Photinos' illustrious career is a 'proof-of-concept' for what can be achieved with a truly immersive and supportive performing arts education."