University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music Appoints New Cello Professor

Sæunn Thorsteinsdóttir arrives at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) from a teaching role at the University of Washington, where she is currently Associate Professor and Chair of the Strings Department.

As a soloist, Thorsteinsdóttir has appearanced with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and Iceland Symphony, among others. She has also given recitals at some of the world's foremost venues, including Carnegie Hall, London's Barbican Center, and Hamburg's Elbphilharmonie.

Thorsteinsdóttir also has an extensive discography — her disc Vernacular, an album of Icelandic music for solo cello, was released in 2019, and she has also recently recorded Quake, a cello concerto that was written for her by Páll Ragnar Pálsson. She is currently working on a recording of the complete Bach cello suites, which is due for release in early 2023.

In addition, Thorsteinsdóttir is an advocate of contemporary music, and especially of Icelandic composers. She premiered works by Þuríður Jónsdóttir, Halldór Smárason, and Melia Watras, as well as giving the US premiere of Betsy Jolas’ Wanderlied and the Hong Kong premiere of Sofia Gubaidulina’s Canticle of the Sun.

"Sæunn Thorsteinsdóttir is an award-winning performer and an equally accomplished educator," said Stanley E. Romanstein, CCM's Dean.

"She will be a wonderful addition to CCM's faculty and Cincinnati's arts community. I would like to thank the members of our search committee — which was co-chaired by Rachel Calin and Won-Bin Yim, and also included James Bunte, Amit Even-Tov, Aik Khai Pung and Sandra Rivers — for their excellent work."