Classical Circuit Podcast Episode 6 — Cellist Jamie Walton

Host Ella Lee chats with the cellist and cultural entrepreneur about what drives him and his creative process, why he doesn’t miss the conventional concert circuit, and more

Launched this year, Ella Lee’s classical music podcast, “Classical Circuit” explores the intricacies of the classical music industry, and all that comes with working in it. Hailing from across the profession, the podcast guests discuss their careers and personal opinions.

“Classical Circuit” is now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts. We had a chance to talk to Ella about her inspiration behind creating this podcast in this exclusive interview.

Jamie Walton is a cellist, cultural entrepreneur, and Artistic Director of the North York Moors Chamber Music Festival. As a soloist, he has appeared and recorded with the UK’s finest orchestras, including recording three concerti with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and no less than ten concerti with the Philharmonia Orchestra (including the Dvorak and Schumann concerti under Vladimir Ashkenazy).

In this episode, Jamie talks about what drives him and his creative process, the parallels he finds between music and food, why he doesn’t miss the conventional concert circuit, and why he’s so passionate about showing young musicians a world outside of the conservatoire bubble.

Turning his focus to chamber music, Jamie launched his festival in 2009, which has sold to capacity audiences ever since and was shortlisted twice for a Royal Philharmonic Society award. It was also one of the only organizations that went ahead as planned during the COVID-19 pandemic (in 2020 and 2021), adapting quickly to house concerts in a five thousand square foot acoustically-adapted marquee. Jamie was also the Patron and lead campaigner for Cedar’s Hall, a brand new concert hall at Wells Cathedral School, which he helped officially open in 2016. And, more recently, he initiated the building of a new state-of-the-art recording studio in the heart of the North York Moors - Ayriel Studios - which opened in 2022.