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Keiran Campbell was drawn to the cello after he stumbled across one in his grandmother’s basement and was baffled by its size. Once he turned 8, he began taking lessons- on a much smaller cello- in his native Greensboro, North Carolina.  After studying extensively with Leonid Zilper, former solo cellist of the Bolshoi Ballet, he received his Bachelors and Masters at the Juilliard School, working with Darrett Adkins, Timothy Eddy, and Phoebe Carrai.  Keiran also spent several springs in Cornwall, England, studying with Steven Isserlis and Ralph Kirshbaum at Prussia Cove.   He now is based in Toronto, Canada, where he performs as a core member of Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra.

Described as “a delightful performer… playing with the ease of a pub fiddler,” (The WholeNote) and “an active, sparkling participant in the musical conversation” (Toronto Star), Keiran has performed with ensembles including The English Concert, NYBI, Philharmonia Baroque, The Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, Four Nations Ensemble, and Les Violons du Roy.  He recently performed with Le Concert Des Nations under Jordi Savall, touring Europe performing Beethoven Symphonies before recording them on Savall’s new Beethoven CD. During his summers, Keiran has performed with Teatro Nuovo, Lakes Area Music Festival, and The Carmel Bach Festival. He is also on faculty at the recently formed, UC Berkeley-based, Chamber Music Collective, which focuses primarily on post-1750 performance practice.  Recent performance highlights include concerto appearances with Tafelmusik and Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, a concert of Monteverdi Madrigals with Jordi Savall and Le Concert des Nations in Carnegie Hall, a solo recital with fortepianist Sezi Seskir at the Berkeley Early Music festival, and performances of Handel’s Saul and Solomon with English Concert at the BBC Proms and Edinburgh Festival.

Keiran maintained a private teaching studio in New York City, and he recently gave masterclasses at UNC Chapel Hill, Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, Western University, at Tafelmusik Winter Institute, and at Tafelmusik Baroque Summer Institute.

Keiran plays on a cello by Timothy Johnson, and a 1770s bow attributed to the Dodd family, which was purchased in part thanks to a grant from the Ontario Arts Council. Keiran is also fascinated with instrument making, which he studies with the maker of his cello, Timothy Johnson.

2022-2023

January:
19th at 7:30pm, with Four Nations Ensemble in New York City
25th at 7:30pm, recital with fortepianist Sezi Seskir at Penn State University
27th at 5pm, recital with fortepianist Sezi Seskir at Cornell University

February:
10th, 11th, 12th, La Passione: Haydn & Mozart with Rachel Podger and Tafelmusik in Toronto

March:
3rd, 4th, 5th, Bach’s Library with Francesco Corti and Tafelmusik in Toronto
23rd, 24th, 25th, Bach St. John Passion with Tafelmusik in Toronto
28th, Bach B minor Mass with Toronto Mendelssohn Choir and Jean-Sébastien Vallée

April:
7th, Handel Brockes Passione with Jonathan Oldengram in Toronto
6th, 8th, 9th, Handel Resurrection with Opera Atelier in Toronto
16th, Tafelmusik presents La Stravagante! in St. Catharine’s, Ontario
18th at 7pm, Masterclass at Duke University in North Carolina
19th at 7:30pm, recital with fortepianist Sezi Seskir at Duke University in North Carolina
22nd, Ensemble Castor with Mireille Lebel and Rodolfo Richter, presented by the Boston Early Music Festival in Boston, MA
23rd, Ensemble Castor with Mireille Lebel and Rodolfo Richter, at the Morgan Library in New York City
28th, 29th, Higher Love: Virtuoso Arias with Samuel Mariño and Tafelmusik in Toronto

May:
4th, 6th, Les Grands with Four Nations Ensemble in New York City
12th, 13th, 14th, Grand Voyage: The French Baroque with Leila Schayegh and Tafelmusik in Toronto
19th, 20th, 21st, Flamboyant Amadeus with Arion Baroque Orchestra and Julien Chauvin

June:
4th-11th, Boston Early Music Festival Opera and Concerts
12th-16th, Chamber Music Collective in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania

July:
15th-29th, Carmel Bach Festival in Carmel-by-the Sea, California

August:
Lakes Area Music Festival

I am available for cello lessons in Toronto and via Skype. To enquire about lesson rates, to schedule a lesson, to book me for concerts, or to ask any other questions, fill out the form below!