Sophie Kauer, cello, and Alison Rhind, piano

Saturday 3 June 2023 at 7:30 pm

Sophie Kauer, cello, and Alison Rhind, piano

Cellist Sophie Kauer returns to Breinton after two performances here as a schoolchild in 2017 and 2019 at our Local Young Performers Soirées. From here, she has gone from strength to strength, first winning Woking Musician of the Year and then a place at the prestigious Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, where she studies with renowned cellist Torleif Thedeén. Sophie was then selected from hundreds of cellists and actors to appear in the Oscar-nominated film TÁR with Cate Blanchett. She has also recorded music from the film for with the London Symphony Orchestra for Deutsche Grammophon.

We are thrilled to have Sophie back as a professional cellist, ready to mesmerize the audience with her exceptional skills. Her programme, featuring pieces by Prokofiev, Franck, Schubert, and Nadia Boulanger, promises to be a night to remember. Join us for an unforgettable evening of classical music with Sophie Kauer.

Tickets available soon.

About Sophie Kauer

Sophie Kauer is a British-German cellist and actress, born in London in 2001. She is currently studying for a BA in Classical Cello Performance at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo, in the class of world-renowned cellist Torleif Thedeén. She started cello lessons aged 8 and, just 18 months later, was accepted into the Junior Department of the Royal Academy of Music in London where she studied for 7 years and received a scholarship. From the ages of 13 to 18, she was a private student of distinguished cello professor, Melissa Phelps. She has also studied with Maria Zachariadou.

Sophie was recently selected from several hundred cellists and actresses worldwide for a leading role in TÁR, an upcoming feature film starring Cate Blanchett as an orchestral conductor, written and directed by Todd Field. Sophie provided live performances for the film, including playing with the Dresden Philharmonic. She has also recorded music from the film with the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Natalie Murray Beale, for an album that was released by Deutsche Grammophon in October 2022 and went to No.1 on the US Classical Billboard chart. TÁR was released in the US in October 2022 and has already won several awards as well as being selected for numerous festivals, including the 2022 Venice and New York Film Festivals.

Prior to this, Sophie had been successful in many competitions in the UK, including being the winner of the Search for a Cello Soloist competition and being named Young Musician of the Year by the Woking Music Festival. At the Junior Royal Academy of Music she had won all prizes open to her by the age of 16, including the Advanced Cello Prize, the Lower Strings Prize and the Dame Ruth Railton Chamber Prize.

She has performed the Dvorak, Elgar and Haydn Cello Concertos with orchestra, as well as the Vivaldi Concerto for Two Cellos and Bruch’s Kol Nidrei. She has also played numerous solo recitals in the UK, including as part of the Leeds International Concert Season and the Breinton Recital Society.

Sophie received a scholarship from the International Academy of Music in Liechtenstein and participates in the Intensive Music Weeks and activities offered by the Academy. She is also a Hattori Foundation Junior Award recipient and has been supported by scholarships from the Astona International Music Academy in Switzerland, the Michael Hurd Memorial Fund, the Guildford Spring Music Festival and the Woking Young Musician Fund. She has been very fortunate to receive masterclasses from Andreas Brantelid, Henrik Brendstrup, Vilde Frang, Johannes Goritizki, Henning Kraggerud, Kian Soltani, Troels Svane and Raphael Wallfisch.

Chamber music has been a fundamental part of Sophie’s musical development with her having attended national chamber courses and received tuition from members of the Doric, Allegri, Haydn and Tippet Quartets from an early age. Her chamber playing has received national recognition, with her piano trio having won their category in the National Finals of the 2017 Pro Corda Chamber Music Festival. She also received regular duo coaching from the age of 13 from Alison Rhind, one of the UK’s leading collaborative pianists. At the Norwegian Academy of Music her coaches have included Lars Anders Tomter, Are Sandbakken, Henning Kraggerud, Morten Carlsen and Per Lundberg.

Sophie plays a modern cello made by Ragnar Hayn in 2020.