Johannes Moser
With an abundance of both technique and charisma, Johannes Moser has emerged as a top virtuoso cellist of the 21st century. He is also a passionate chamber musician.
Moser was born on June 14, 1979, in Munich, Germany. His father was a German violinist, his mother a Canadian soprano, and he has retained dual German and Canadian citizenship. He lived in Germany, however, until moving to New York in 2012. Moser took up the violin at age five and then switched to the cello at eight. His first teacher was his father, but "[e]ventually, there was a little bit of a clash," he told the Dallas Observer. "I think we decided at some point that for the sake of peace at home, it would be better for me to move on." Studying with David Geringas, a student of Mstislav Rostropovich who worked in Germany during the latter part of his career, Moser developed an independent voice.
His first breakthrough was a silver medal showing at the 2002 Tchaikovsky Competition, performing Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33. He has since become identified with that cello showpiece, performing it dozens of times. Moser signed with the Haenssler label and recorded sonatas by Shostakovich, Mieczyslaw Weinberg, and Boris Tchaikovsky for his 2006 debut. That was followed by an album covering Saint-Saëns' complete works for cello and orchestra and by an acclaimed three-volume Brahms and His Contemporaries series; Moser earned the Brahms Prize in 2014. Several more major concerto releases propelled Moser to top-level concert slots under such conductors as Riccardo Muti, Mariss Jansons, and Gustavo Dudamel, among many others.
In 2015, Moser signed with the audiophile label PentaTone and announced plans for a new group of major repertory recordings. That began with a pairing of concertos by Lalo and Dvorák and continued in 2017 with a disc featuring the Elgar Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85, and the Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations. Termed a "rock star cellist" by the Observer, Moser is an informal and fashionable dresser who listens mostly to non-classical music on recordings (he prefers to experience classical music in concert). He has expressed a serious commitment to teaching aspiring musicians from kindergarten level on up. Moser is also an enthusiastic chamber musician who has performed with Joshua Bell, Emanuel Ax, and Jonathan Biss, among others. A top-notch cyclist, he has ridden across the Alps but has curtailed his long-distance cycling activity in order to protect his hands.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Weinberg: Piano Trio - Violin Sonatina - Double Bass Sonata
Kolja Blacher, Erez Ofer, Nabil Shehata, Johannes Moser, Elisaveta Blumina
Chamber Music - Released by CPO on Apr 1, 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Der Wind bläset wo er will
Danish National Symphony Orchestra, Johannes Moser, Otto Tausk
Classical - Released by Dacapo on Dec 4, 2020
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Silent Night - Chill Christmas Cello
Classical - Released by Platoon on Dec 3, 2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Trio No. 2 in E Minor, Op. 67: II. Allegro con brio
Johannes Moser, Vadim Gluzman, Andrei Korobeinikov
Classical - Released by Platoon on Nov 10, 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Bridge, Britten and Bax: Cello Sonatas
Chamber Music - Released by SWR Classic on Jul 27, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
MARTUCCI, G.: Cello Sonata / BRAHMS, J.: Lieder (arr. for cello) / KIRCHNER, T.: 8 Pieces (Brahms and his Contemporaries, Vol. 3) (Moser, Rivinius)
Chamber Music - Released by SWR Classic on Mar 1, 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fugitive Visions of Mozart: III. Allegro
Johannes Moser, Vadim Gluzman, Andrei Korobeinikov
Classical - Released by Platoon on Dec 8, 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
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BRAHMS / FUCHS / ZEMLINSKY: Cello Sonatas (Brahms and his Contemporaries, Vol. 1)
Chamber Music - Released by SWR Classic on Jan 1, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
WEINBERG / SHOSTAKOVICH / TCHAIKOVSKY, B.: Cello Sonatas
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Holberg Suite, Op. 40: I. Präludium
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BRAHMS, J. / STRAUSS, R. / HERZOGENBERG, H.: Cello Sonatas (Brahms and his Contemporaries, Vol. 2) (Moser, Rivinius)
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Dvořák & Lalo: Cello Concertos
Johannes Moser, Pražská komorní filharmonie, Jakub Hrůša
Concertos - Released by PENTATONE on Sep 1, 2015
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schnittke: String Trio - Prokofiev: 5 Melodies - Violin Sonata No. 1
Kolja Blacher, Walter Kussner, Vassily Lobanov, Johannes Moser
Chamber Music - Released by Phil.harmonie on Jan 1, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bernard Rands: Chains like the Sea
Johannes Moser, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Clark Rundell
Classical - Released by NMC Recordings on Feb 8, 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn & Mendelssohn-Hensel: Works for Cello & Piano
Johannes Moser, Alasdair Beatson
Chamber Music - Released by PENTATONE on Aug 1, 2019
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: Cello Concerto - Tchaikovsky: Roccoco Variations
Johannes Moser, Ernest Ansermet, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Andrew Manze
Concertos - Released by PENTATONE on Feb 1, 2017
Gramophone Editor's Choice24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: Cello Concerto
Johannes Moser, Ernest Ansermet, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Andrew Manze
Concertos - Released by PENTATONE on Sep 4, 2020
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninoff & Prokofiev: Works for Cello and Piano
Johannes Moser, Andrei Korobeinikov
Chamber Music - Released by PENTATONE on Nov 1, 2016
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Fugitive Visions of Mozart: VI. Allegretto
Johannes Moser, Vadim Gluzman, Andrei Korobeinikov
Classical - Released by Platoon on Oct 20, 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo