Shauna Rolston, Cellist
www.shaunarolston.com
Shauna Rolston was born in Edmonton, Alberta (Canada) and began playing cello at the age of two on a one-eighth cello presented to her for her birthday. By the age of eleven was playing on a full size cello, an 1824 Chanot that she has been playing ever since. When Shauna was twelve, the family moved to Banff where her parents were appointed Co-Directors of the Music and Sound Programs at the Banff Centre. Consequently, Shauna was given the opportunity to play for many renowned guest artists from many disciplines including Zoltan Szekely, Gyorgy Sebok, Luciano Berio, William Primrose and Igor Oistrach, as well as cellists Janos Starker, Zara Nelsova (1918-2002), Gabriel Magyar and Aldo Parisot. She also performed in recital and recorded with renowned pianist Menahem Pressler, and at the age of thirteen played for famed cellist Leonard Rose who invited her to study with him at Juilliard. At the age of fourteen, Shauna became the youngest member, along with violin prodigy Joshua Bell, to attend the Geneva Conservatory in Switzerland where she studied with Pierre Fournier, and later at the Britten-Pears School in Aldeburgh (England) where she also studied with William Pleeth, teacher of Jaqueline Du Pré. At sixteen, she made a spectacular debut at New York's Town Hall with her mother at the piano. After two years of concertizing she entered Yale University to study with the distinguished cellist and pedagogue, Aldo Parisot. While there she worked as his teaching assistant and obtained a BA in the History of Art (1991) and a Master of Music degree in Performance (1992).
Having been named "Young Artist to Watch" by Musical America (1986), Shauna Rolston is considered one of Canada’s most celebrated musicians and one of the finest cellists of her generation. She has been described as “impressive,” “fearless,” “colourful and provocative” –her work “breathtaking,” “powerful,” “intimate and pure.” She has been praised by critics and impartial observers for the ease and naturalness of her technique, her pure intonation, her colour and extroversion and sheer fearlessness, and her ability to produce a huge tone and to play with great delicacy. Shauna is often compared favorably to Jacqueline Du Pré. According to Classic CD Magazine “..her recording of Elgar’s cello concerto is worthy to stand alongside Jacqueline Du Prés classical account. This could be the most remarkable performance in the last 20 years.” James Reel (Fanfare Magazine) writes that the Rolston/Du Pré comparison is “the inevitable fate of a gifted, precocious, attractive, spontaneous, young, English-speaking cellist”. However, he goes on to point out that “her repertoire interests are far broader than her English predecessor’s”. Indeed, Shauna Rolston is recognized as one of the most passionate and enthusiastic advocates and performers of the music of our time. She has had an astounding number of works written for her and whose works she has premiered include fellow Canadians, Kelly-Marie Murphy, Heather Schmidt, Oskar Morawetz, Bruce Mather, Christos Hatzis and Chan Ka Nin, as well as Krzysztof Penderecki, Gavin Bryers, Mark Anthony Turnage, Rolf Wallin, Augusta Read Thomas, and Karen Tanaka. Two Canadian music icons, the late Jean Coulthard (1908-2000) and Violet Archer (1913-2000) –mentors since she was a toddler- introduced her to theory and analysis of music and wrote for her. More recent commissions and premieres include three double concerti for cello and flute by Karen Tanaka, Ron Royer, and Kelly-Marie Murphy, a cello concerto with orchestra and children’s choir by Gary Kulesha, cello concerti by Chris Paul Harman and Larysa Kuzmenko, and “Icicles of Fire” for cello and piano and a double concerto for cello and piano, by Heather Schmidt.
Since her New York City Town Hall debut at the age of 16, Shauna continues to perform regularly around the world appearing in recital and concerto engagements in London, Paris, Copenhagen, Budapest, Rome, Amsterdam, Tokyo, Seoul, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Sao Paulo, Prague, Ankara, Toronto, Montreal, New York, Boston, Washington, Los Angeles, Saint Louis, Denver and San Diego. She has performed at many prestigious international festivals including the Casals festival in Puerto Rico, the Kuhmo Festival in Finland, the Gubbio Festival in Italy, the San Miguel Festival in Mexico, the Tivoli Festival in Denmark, the Stavanger Festival in Norway, the Newport, Sandpoint, Ohio, Maryland, and Britt festivals in the USA, the Banff Festival of the Arts and the Orford Festival in Canada as well as the new music festivals in Winnipeg, Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa. She has collaborated with conductors Krzysztof Penderecki, Mario Bernardi, Hans Graf, Andrew Davis, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Marin Alsop, Pavel Kogan, Andreas Delfs, Keith Lockhart, Kenneth Jean, Uri Meyer, Peter Bay, Sam Wong, George Hansen, Andrey Boreyko, and Yoav Talmi, among others.
As a chamber musician, Shauna has performed with many renowned artists including the Gallois Quintet and most recently, pianist and composer Heather Schmidt. This latter collaboration began with critically acclaimed duo recitals at the Winnipeg New Music Festival in 2002, and developed with performances as part of the Governor General of Canada’s state delegation visit to Finland and Iceland in 2003 and a tour of the Maritime Provinces through Debut Atlantic in 2004. In 2005 Shauna and Heather embark on a North American tour which includes performances in Ottawa’s National Arts Centre, Vancouver, Victoria, the Harvard Musical Association in Boston, and a benefit concert in Grand Cayman.
Recent highlights include 20 recitals with the quarter finalists of the Honens International Piano Competition, at the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico with the China Philharmonic as soloist in the Concerto Grosso for three cello soloists by Krzysztof Penderecki under the direction of the composer and with the Vancouver, Victoria and Banff Festival Orchestras in premiere performances of Doug Schmidt.s concerto written for her entitled “Granny’s Aching Back”. She has also appeared as soloist with the Utah, Winnipeg and Toronto Symphonies and in recital at the Lincoln Center in New York, in Calgary, Toronto, at the Banff Festival of the Arts and the Orford Festival in Canada, the Ohrid Festival in Macedonia and the Canada Dance Festival. In addition to solo and concerto performances around the world, future projects include a television special for the Biography Channel, a recital for the Bravo Channel’s “The Classical Now” series, and recordings with the Gallois Quintet (Naxos) and Heather Schmidt (Analekta).
A prolific recording artist since the age of 16, Shauna’s most recent CD “Shauna and Friends” features popular favorites arranged by Claude Kenneson for solo cello and an ensemble of 12 cellists conducted by Keri-Lynn Wilson. Her latest video “The Dying Swan” with prima ballerina Evelyn Hart (directed by Veronica Tennant) was premiered at the 2004 International Moving Pictures Festival, and two of Shauna’s previous videos “smokin f-holes” with Squeezplay, and “Words Fail” with dancer and choreographer, Peggy Baker, are featured regularly on BRAVO.
The exceptional diversity of Shauna’s artistry is reflected in the diversity of the awards she has received including: International Press Award (Ohrid Festival), Winner of Best Classical CD –West Coast Music Awards (“This is the Colour of my Dreams”), and Winner of Best Short Film (“Trio”-Alberta Motion Picture Association, directed by Veronica Tennant) which features music performed by Shauna and her parents, Winner of the Classic CD Magazine Award, United Kingdom, and the youngest recipient of the Pro Musicis International Award. She was also awarded the Canada 125th Anniversary Medal for significant contributions to Canada, the Alberta Achievement Award and was declared “One of the Leaders of the Future” by Macleans.
In addition to her busy concert and recording career, Shauna is a passionate educator whose teaching philosophy reflects her personal journey. “My teaching has to do with freedom, creativity, trust, and the science of the physical self as the ultimate expressive instrument. Exploration is at the centre of my work. I’m fascinated by the art of expression through the cello, and technique as an extension of the mind and creative spirit of each student.” In 1994 Shauna Rolston joined the music faculty of the University of Toronto where she is Professor and Co-Head of the String Department. She is also a Visiting Artist for the Music and Sound Programs at the Banff Centre.
