Steven Isserlis Announced as New Classeek Ambassador

The acclaimed soloist, chamber musician, educator, author, and broadcaster will join the initiative to support young and emerging artists

Founded in 2017 in Lausanne, Switzerland, Classeek is an alliance of passion for the classical music world and the desire to provide global technological solutions to artists and musicians. Its Ambassador Programme provides a one-year career enhancement program for promising young classical musicians who are ready for a performance career at the highest level.

The tailored program increases the artists’ overall visibility via Classeek’s network of ambassadors, provides the artist with promotional materials, acts as conduits to relevant industry professionals, and develops young artists’ entrepreneurial skills and personal goals. Entry into the program is via nomination by one of Classeek’s Artist Ambassadors.

Classeek recently announced that cellist Stevin Isserlis will join pianists Sir András Schiff and Michel Béroff, cellist Gautier Capuçon, violinist Renaud Capuçon, flautist Emmanuel Pahud, and industry professionals such as Sonia Simmenauer and Markus Wyler as an Artist Ambassador.

"When I met Steven I was immediately struck by his energy and commitment towards the younger generation," writes Catarina Amon, Classeek Founder & CEO. "He will be a great addition to our roster of Ambassadors and we’re thrilled with this collaboration."

A protege of Daniil Shafran, Isserlis is widely respected as one of today’s eminent cello soloists and chamber musicians. As an educator, Isserlis has served as the Artistic Director of the International Musicians’ Seminar at Prussia Cove since 1997.

As a concerto soloist, he appears regularly with the world’s leading orchestras and conductors including the Berlin Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra Washington, London Philharmonic, and Zurich Tonhalle orchestras. He also performs with chamber orchestras like the Australian, Mahler, Norwegian, Scottish, Zurich and St Paul Chamber Orchestras.

An advocate for new music, he has premiered works from composers including John Tavener, Thomas Adès, Stephen Hough, Wolfgang Rihm, and David Matthews.

His honors include a CBE in recognition of his services to music, the Schumann Prize of the City of Zwickau, and the Piatigorsky Prize in the USA. In addition to being one of only two living cellists featured in Gramophone’s Hall of Fame, in 2017, he was awarded the Glashütte Original Music Festival Award in Dresden, the Wigmore Hall Gold Medal, and the Walter Willson Cobbett Medal for Services to Chamber Music.

"Nourishing and encouraging young musical talent is an important part of my life; so I am very happy to become an Ambassador for Classeek," Isserlis said. "I hope that we will collaborate in various ways in order to assist in the emergence and development of young talent."

On March 23, tune into The Violin Channel to hear Classeek Young Artist violinist Bilal Alnemr and pianist Giuseppe Mentuccia performing a program of Schumann, Fauré, and Solhi al-Wadi perform from Aubonne, Switzerland.