Amit Peled, cello

From the United States to Europe to the Middle East and Asia, Israeli cellist Amit Peled — a musician of profound artistry and charismatic stage presence — is acclaimed as one of the most exciting instrumentalists on the concert stage today. As a strong advocate of breaking boundaries between performers and the public, promoting and sharing classical music with wider audiences, Peled was recently praised by Baltimore Sun’s Tim Smith:  "Peled did a lot of joking in remarks to the audience. His amiable and inviting personality is exactly the type everyone says we’ll need more of if classical music is to survive."

Mr. Peled has performed as a soloist with many orchestras and in the world’s major concert halls such as: Carnegie Hall and Alice Tully Hall, New York; Salle Gaveau, Paris; Wigmore Hall, London; Konzerthaus, Berlin; and Tel Aviv’s Mann Auditorium. Following his enthusiastically received Alice Tully Hall concerto debut playing the Hindemith cello concerto, the New York Times described his "glowing tone, a seductive timbre and an emotionally pointed approach to phrasing that made you want to hear him again."

During the 2011/12 season, Mr. Peled embarked on an extensive concerto debut tour in the US and Germany with the Nordwest Philharmonie, performing both Shostakovich Concerto No. 1 and Victor Herbert’s Cello Concerto, visiting nineteen different cities. Moreover, Peled joined the legendary Krzysztof Penderecki for his cello concerto in Chicago’s Millennium Park; performed the Elgar and Shostakovich concertos with Maestro Michael Stern and the IRIS Orchestra; performed Haydn’s C Major Cello Concerto with Nicola Luisotti and the San Francisco Opera Orchestra; and, performed the Schumann Concerto with the Israel Chamber Orchestra. After an enthusiastic recital debut at the Kennedy Center, Mr. Peled will return to that prestigious stage in the 2012/13 season.

As a recording artist, Mr. Peled released his third Centaur Records CD "Reflections" in 2012. Mr. Peled’s previous two CDs, "The Jewish Soul" and "Cellobration" (Centaur Records), are critically acclaimed. Fanfare Magazine stated:  "By all evidence, Amit Peled is a superb cellist. His technical prowess in the Davidoff and Ligeti vouchsafe that; and his tone, of pellucid purity, gleams with a glint of gold in the slow, lyrical numbers."

Mr. Peled is also a frequent guest artist, performing and giving master classes at prestigious summer music festivals such as the Marlboro Music Festival, Newport Music Festival, Seattle Chamber Music Festival, Heifetz International Music Institute, Schleswig Holstein and Euro Arts Festivals in Germany, Gotland Festival in Sweden, Prussia Cove Festival in England, The Violoncello Forum in Spain, and the Mizra International Academy and Festival in Israel.

Amit Peled has been featured on television and radio stations throughout the world, including NPR’s Performance Today, WGBH Boston, WQXR New York, WFMT Chicago, Deutschland Radio Berlin, Radio France, Swedish National Radio & TV, and Israeli National Radio & TV.

One of the most sought after cello pedagogues, Mr. Peled is a Professor at the Peabody Conservatory of Music of the Johns Hopkins University.