The Philadelphia Orchestra Welcomes New Cellist

Cellist Michael Katz will assume his new role in the orchestra in April 2025

A GRAMMY Award-nominated cellist, Michael Katz has performed across the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Israel.

Katz will now be joining The Philadelphia Orchestra as a section cellist. Led by its Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin, this year marks the orchestra’s 125th concert season. 

As a soloist, Katz has appeared with the Princeton Symphony, Ann Arbor Symphony, DuPage Symphony, New York Classical Players, The Juilliard Orchestra, Orchestra de Conservatoire Supérieur de Paris, Greenwich Village Orchestra, Ensemble 212, the Doctors’ Orchestral Society of New York, and more. 

In chamber music, he has collaborated with Itzhak Perlman, Midori, Cho-Liang Lin, Noah Benidx-Balgley, Isabel Leonard, Donald Weilerstein, Daniel Philips, Peter Wiley, Anthony Marwood, among others.

Further, as the cellist of the Lysander Piano Trio, Katz was awarded top prizes at the Concert Artists Guild Competition, the Coleman Competition, and the J.C. Arriaga Competition.

Additionally, he has been a Fellow in Carnegie Hall’s Ensemble Connect, and since 2019, has served as a core member of Decoda — an affiliate ensemble of Carnegie Hall.  

His other achievements include prizes at the Aviv Competition, The Juilliard School’s Concerto Competition, and the Turjeman Competition, plus awards from the America Israel Cultural Foundation and the Ronen Foundation.​

Currently, he is on the faculty of the Csehy Summer School of Music and the Chamber Music Institute in Stamford. Until 2017, he served as an adjunct cello professor at Nyack College. 

Hailing from Tel-Aviv, Israel, Katz started cello lessons at age seven with Zvi Plesser, Hillel Zori, and Mikhail Khomitzer. A graduate of the New England Conservatory, Juilliard, and SUNY Stony Brook, his mentors also included Laurence Lesser, Joel Krosnick, and Colin Carr.

“I am beyond excited to officially announce that I will be joining the cello section of The Philadelphia Orchestra this April,” Katz posted on Facebook. “It is truly an honor and a privilege to become a part of such a storied ensemble and I'm looking forward to many years of incredible music making with my new musical family!”