Sheku and Isata Kanneh-Mason’s performances have been lauded as “exceptionally woven together, as if by a single mind” (New York Classical Review). This recital connects eras and styles, pairing Felix Mendelssohn’s Cello Sonata No. 1 and Robert Schumann’s folk-inspired pieces with Rebecca Clarke’s evocative 1919 sonata and Nadia Boulanger’s set of three movements from the same decade.

Program

Fe. Mendelssohn: Cello Sonata No. 1
N. Boulanger: Three Pieces for Cello and Piano
R. Schumann: Five Pieces in a Folk Style
R. Clarke: Cello Sonata

Artists

Sheku Kanneh-Mason (Cello): Cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason’s mission is to make music accessible to all, whether by performing for children in a school hall, at an underground club, or in the world’s leading concert venues. His 2024–25 season highlights include serving as the Konzerthaus Berlin’s artist-in-residence and Lucerne Festival’s 2024 artiste étoile, and appearing with the Czech Philharmonic in Prague and on tour with Jakub Hrůša and Semyon Bychkov, Zurich Tonhalle Orchestra with Paavo Järvi, WDR Symphony Cologne with Cristian Măcelaru, Orchestre National de Lyon with Leonard Slatkin, Sinfonia of London with John Wilson on a UK tour, SWR Symphony Stuttgart with Christoph Eschenbach, Camerata Salzburg’s tour, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra with Manfred Honeck, New World Symphony with Stéphane Denève, The Philadelphia Orchestra with Yannick Nézet-Séguin, and City of Birmingham Symphony with Kazuki Yamada. He has been named The New York Philharmonic’s 2025–26 season Mary and James G. Wallach Artist-in-Residence, in which he will perform concertos by Bloch and Elgar, appear in an Artist Spotlight recital with pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason, and more. Learn more about Sheku Kanneh-Mason

Isata Kanneh-Mason (Piano): Pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason offers eclectic and interesting recital programs featuring repertoire encompassing Haydn and Mozart, Fanny Mendelssohn and Clara Schumann, Chopin and Brahms, and Gershwin and beyond. She is equally at home in concertos by Felix Mendelssohn and Clara Schumann as she is those of Prokofiev and Dohnányi. Learn more about Isata Kanneh-Mason