the cello in my life Steuart Pincombe

• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 - 1750): Suite V in C minor BWV 1011:
• 1 Suite V in C minor BWV 1011: I. Prelude 06:50
• 2 Suite V in C minor BWV 1011: II. Allemande 06:20
• 3 Suite V in C minor BWV 1011: III. Courante 02:20
• 4 Suite V in C minor BWV 1011: IV. Sarabande 04:09
• 5 Suite V in C minor BWV 1011: V. Gavotte I & II 04:51
• 6 Suite V in C minor BWV 1011: VI. Gigue 03:05
• Domenico Galli (1730 - ): Sonata VI in F major:
• 7 Sonata VI in F major: I. Adagio 01:44
• 8 Sonata VI in F major: II. Allegro 01:39
• 9 Sonata VI in F major: III. Andante-Vivace 00:56
• 10 Sonata VI in F major: IV. Giga 02:10
• Morton Feldman (1926 - 1987):
• 11 Projection 1 04:08
• 12 Intersection 4 05:26
• Helmut Lachenmann (b. 1935):
• 13 Pression 09:23
• Iannis Xenakis (1922 - 2001):
• 14 Kottos 10:51
• Total Runtime 01:03:52

Info for the cello in my life

Steuart Pincombe is an artist one safely can argue he’s fearless. The combination of elements is self explanatory why we make this bold statement: 1) gut strings on his anonymous, roaring 18th Century German or French cello, 2) that’s also tuned a fair bit lower than modern tradition, 3) stunningly daring and refined repertoire by Helmut Lachenmann, Iannis Xenakis, Morton Feldman, Domenico Galli and J.S. Bach’s famous (but by no means easygoing) 5th Suite, 4) recorded in a very fine but very cold little church at the Dutch countryside. The result is a mysterious kind of enchantment and Steuart’s narrative skills don’t leave any questions why this young cellist from Missouri (US) is so cherished by colleagues and music lovers.

The cello in my life. The title probably appears to be simple, but listening to Steuart transfers you to his personal life in a way not many musicians dare to do.

Steuart Pincombe, cello

Steuart Pincombe
The American cellist, Steuart Pincombe, quickly made a name for himself as an exquisite interpreter of early and contemporary music who was keen to experiment. Steuart is regularly featured as a soloist and chamber musician in in leading venues across North America and Europe including Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, Concertgebouw Brugge, RADIALSYSTEM V Berlin, Bozar Brussels, Tivoli Vredenburg, Carnegie Hall, The Kennedy Center, and the Kauffman Center, but he is equally at home playing in your local cafe or brewery. His playing has garnered wide acclaim from the public and critics alike: The Philadelphia Inquirer calls him “a gorgeous player with perfect intonation, imaginative phrasing”, The Strad Magazine refers to him as a “superb soloist”, virtuoso cellist Giovanni Sollima calls Steuart “a complete artist, true virtuoso and poet, totally at ease with all languages and musical styles”, and an audience member once said “You’da asked me a week ago if I’sa gonna be here, I’da said ‘hell no’. Well I’m here - and I love this stuff [Bach]”.

In addition to his numerous chamber engagements, he has appeared as soloist with ensembles such as Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop (DE), Holland Baroque (NL), Wallfisch Band (UK), Symphonie Atlantique (NL), Apollos Fire (US), and the Springfield (MO) Symphony (US). His concert 'Bach&Beer' was selected by the Cleveland Plain Dealer as one of the 'Top 10 Classical Events of the Year' and a concert in which he appeared as soloist with Rene Schiffer and Apollo's Fire was numbered in London's '5 Best Classical Music Moments of 2014' according to The Telegraph (UK). If you can't hear him live, Steuart makes regular appearances on radio and has been featured on BBC, CBC, NPO, and NPR and has recently begun recording for 7 Mountain Records in Amsterdam.

With the aim of equipping other leading artists to engage with new audiences Steuart and his wife Michelle started the Music in Familiar Spaces Artist Collective which is made up of some of the leading performers of our time. Steuart and Michelle recently moved to Missouri (US) to start a small, off-grid farm.

I love sound. I have always loved sound. Silence is also very important to me. I also love people of all kinds and I like introducing them to different combinations of sound (and silence of course).

After dedicating years of my life to learning about how to present the highest quality of sound combinations, some people along the way liked the way in which I combined sounds and encouraged me to pursue this further. Some hired me for presentations of these sound combinations in buildings all over the world, famous for their ability to project various sound combinations to an audience in an extraordinary way.

Over time, I realized that many people who really would like to hear my sound (and silence) combinations were unable, either because it was too expensive or seemed inaccessible, or they just didn't realize that they would like it. So I decided to change my way of presenting sounds (and silences...). One of my primary focuses as a combiner of sounds and silences is to step into spaces where all sorts of people are comfortable, in hopes of connecting with them through sounds and silences. To that end, I created Music in Familiar Spaces, a project that began as a yearlong tour of North America and now continues as a collective of leading artists all across the globe.

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