Alban Gerhardt
Cellist Alban Gerhardt has been known for his commitment to unusual repertory and to presenting classical music in unorthodox ways. He has, for instance, been involved in a partnership with Deutsche Bahn, Germany's national railway, wherein he performs live on major German train routes.
Gerhardt was born on May 25, 1969, in Berlin. His father was a Berlin Philharmonic violinist, and his mother was a soprano. Gerhardt studied both cello and piano as a child, taking lessons with various Berlin Philharmonic musicians and other prominent teachers, including Boris Pergamenschikov. His biographical materials, however, do not mention conservatory studies. Gerhardt performed Haydn's Cello Concerto No. 2 in D major at the Berlin Philharmonie concert hall in 1987, when he was 17, and made his formal debut with the Berlin Philharmonic in 1991. He won a series of major competitions in the 1990s, including the Leonard Rose Competition in 1993, and from 1999 to 2001, he was a BBC New Generation Artist. This brought plenty of top-notch concerto collaborations his way, with such ensembles as the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, the Gewandhaus Orchestra of Leipzig, and the Chicago Symphony. As a recitalist, he has performed at the Phillips Collection Museum in Washington, D.C., Wigmore Hall in London, and the Shanghai Concert Hall. In 1995, he released his debut album, Alban Gerhardt, cello.
Increasingly often, Gerhardt has used his growing fame to explore and promote new repertory rather than to emphasize the standard set of cello concertos and chamber music. He commissioned a Cello Concerto from composer Unsuk Chin and performed it at the BBC Proms. Gerhardt has also collaborated with other contemporary composers, including Jörg Widmann, Thomas Larcher, and Brett Dean. In the 2019 season, he collaborated with a violinist, a sculptor, and a choreographer on a multimedia work, Love in Fragments. Gerhardt has been adamant about reaching new audiences for classical music. In addition to his Deutsche Bahn performances, he has performed in other unorthodox venues, including hospitals, schools, and even correctional institutions. Gerhardt has recorded for various labels but mostly for Hyperion since 2005. In 2019, he released a recording of Bach's complete Suites for solo cello. The following year, he joined the WDR Sinfonieorchester and conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste for a recording of the two Shostakovich cello concertos. Gerhardt returned in 2023 with the album Phantasy in Blue, featuring transcriptions for cello and saxophone quartet of works by Gershwin, Vivaldi, Tchaikovsky, and others. By that year, his recording catalog comprised more than 30 items.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Unsuk Chin: 3 Concertos
Myung-Whun Chung, Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, Sunwook Kim, Alban Gerhardt, Wu Wei
Classical - Released by Universal Music Ltd. on 17 Jun 2014
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bach: The 6 Suites for Solo Cello
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 29 Mar 2019
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Phantasy in Blue: Music for Cello and Saxophone Quintet
Alban Gerhardt, Alliage Quintett
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 2 Jun 2023
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich: Cello Concertos Nos. 1 & 2
Alban Gerhardt, WDR Sinfonieorchester, Jukka-Pekka Saraste
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 28 Aug 2020
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Vieuxtemps: Cello Concertos Nos. 1 & 2 etc. (Hyperion Romantic Cello Concerto 6)
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Classical - Released by Hyperion on 10 Feb 2015
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Fitzenhagen: Cello Concertos (Hyperion Romantic Cello Concerto 7)
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Classical - Released by Hyperion on 25 Sep 2015
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Pfitzner: Cello Concertos (Hyperion Romantic Cello Concerto 4)
Alban Gerhardt, Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Sebastian Weigle
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 3 Mar 2014
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Britten: Cello Symphony, Cello Sonata & Cello Suites Nos. 1, 2 & 3
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 30 Dec 2012
24-Bit 88.2 kHz - Stereo -
Rostropovich Encores: A Cello Tribute to Mstislav Rostropovich
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 30 Dec 2016
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Chin: Cello Concerto
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Concertos - Released by Berliner Philharmoniker Recordings on 22 Dec 2023
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Rubinstein: Orchestral Works, Vol. 1
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BRITTEN: Cello Suite No. 1 / BACH, J.S.: Cello Suite No. 5 / KODALY: Cello Sonata (Gerhardt)
Classical - Released by Oehms Classics on 1 Jan 2004
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Brahms: Cello Sonatas
Classical - Released by harmonia mundi on 24 Dec 2009
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Alkan & Chopin: Cello Sonatas
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Shostakovich & Schnittke: Cello Sonatas etc.
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Fauré: Cello Sonatas Nos. 1 & 2; Elegy; Sicilienne etc.
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Cello Concertos - Released by Milken Family Foundation on 16 Nov 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Casals Encores – A Cello Tribute to Pablo Casals
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 14 Jun 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann, Volkmann, Dietrich, Gernsheim: Cello Concertos (Hyperion Romantic Cello Concerto 2)
Alban Gerhardt, Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin, Hannu Lintu
Classical - Released by Hyperion on 29 Jan 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Dohnányi, Enescu & Albert: Cello Concertos (Hyperion Romantic Cello Concerto 1)
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16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Reger: Cello Sonatas Nos. 1-4; Cello Suites Nos. 1-3
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