Kian Soltani's Cello Unlimited

Kian Soltani (Bregenz, Austria, 1992) was born into a family of Persian musicians and started playing the cello when he was four years old. When he was twelve years old, he was accepted into the class of Ivan Monighetti at the Musik-Akademie in Basel. In 2014, he received a scholarship from the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation, which allowed him to continue his studies within the Young Soloist Programme at the Kronberg Academy in Germany. Kian has won various competitions: the Karl Davidoff Competition in Latvia, the Antonio Janigro Competition in Croatia, and the Paolo Competition in Finland.  In January 2018, he released his debut album under Deutsche Grammophon, where he is contracted exclusively, and in 2020 he released his album containing Dvořák’s Cello Concerto with Staatskapelle Berlin conducted by Daniel Barenboim. In 2021, he released his album Cello Unlimited, with compositions by Hans Zimmer and himself. Kian Soltani plays the ‘London’ Stradivarius 1694 cello (ex-Boccherini), which was made available to him on loan by the J & A Beare International Violin Society.

Stefano Bruno (2000, Italy) is a laureate of numerous international competitions. At age 18, he won the 1st prize at the VIII International Cello Competition “David Popper” in Hungary. In 2022, he won the First Prize at the National Cello Competition. Stefano studied at the Conservatory in Foggia, Italy. He continued his studies with Giovanni Gnocchi in Bologna and with Francesco Dillon and Paolo Bonomini in Fiesole. In the past years, Stefano Bruno has been studying at the National Academy of Santa Cecilia in Rome with Giovanni Sollima and at the Conservatory of Amsterdam in the class of Pieter Wispelwey. He concluded his studies summa cum laude at both institutions. In 2022, he made his debut in the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, with a solo recital in the Kleine Zaal as well as in Elgar’s Cello Concerto conducted by Ed Spanjaard in the Grote Zaal. Stefano is a passionate chamber musician. He is a member of the Trio Eidos (piano trio), the duo Greci-Bruno (duo violin and cello), Ensemble Opificio Sonoro (ensemble for contemporary music) and regularly gives cello and piano recitals with Daniël Kramer. Stefano plays a cello made by Rene Jacquemin between 1925 and 1930 in Mirecourt.

Isaac Lottman (Amsterdam, 2003) received his first lessons from Atie Aarts when he was three years old. He went on to receive lessons with Monique Bartels and Charles Watt. When he was 13, he was accepted into the Sweelinck Academy in Amsterdam, where he studied with Monique Heidema. After completing the Academy, he did a preliminary year at the Conservatory of Amsterdam with Maarten Mostert and Pieter Wispelwey. He is currently in his third Bachelor year in the class of Pieter Wispelwey. Isaac has received masterclasses from Jean-Guihen Queyras, Dmitri Ferschtman, Gary Hoffman, Jeroen Reuling, Anastasia Kobekina, and Matthias Bartolomey. In 2019, Isaac won the Britten competition, and in 2022 he received the Second Prize at the National Cello Competition. He has performed as a soloist with various youth and student orchestras in The Netherlands and abroad. He is passionate about chamber music and is the cellist of the Fontana Quartet.

Florianne Remme studied with Jiri Prchal, Corine ’t Hoen, and Lucia Swarts at the Conservatoires in Groningen and The Hague. She is currently studying at the Conservatory in Brussels with Jeroen Reuling. Florianne has won prizes at various competitions and festivals, including the Prinses Christina Concours, Festival Verão Clássico in Lisbon, and the Cello Biënnale Amsterdam. In the 23/24 season, she was a part of the Academy of the Concertgebouw Orchestra. Since 2019, Florianne has been playing a Thomas Bertrand cello (Brussels), on loan from Strings for Talent and the King Baudouin Foundation. She has her bow, a J.J. Martin (Paris), on loan from the Dutch Musical Instruments Foundation.

Cello

Alexander Warenberg (1998) started playing the cello when he was 5 years old. From age eight, he received lessons from Monique Bartels. From 2016 to 2019, Alexander studied with Frans Helmerson at the Barenboim-Said Akademie in Berlin, after which he continued his studies with the same professor at the Kronberg Academy. He is currently studying at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Belgium with Gary Hoffman and Jeroen Reuling. Alexander has won the first prize at the Britten Cello Competition and the national competition of the Stichting Jong Muziektalent Nederland (‘Dutch Foundation for Young Musical Talent’). In 2016, he won the First Prize and the Audience Prize at the National Cello Competition. He also won the first prize at the international Antonio Janigro Cello Competition in Croatia. In 2019, Alexander Warenberg released his first album ‘Sonatas’ under the label TRPTK, with music by Shostakovich and Rachmaninov. In 2021, Alexander was the recipient of the Grachtenfestival Prize. Alexander plays an Alessandro D’Espine cello, previously owned by Paul Tortelier, on loan from a member of the Stretton Foundation.

Geneviève Verhage (1985) is a versatile cellist with a passion for chamber music, renowned for her musicality and strong personality. She is a co-founder of the Ragazze Quartet, where she was the cellist from 1999 to 2013. She is currently a member of Cello Octet Amsterdam and regularly performs with the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Pynarello, and LUDWIG. In addition to classical concerts, Geneviève also gives theatre performances. She has toured with Orkater/Via Berlin, Oorkaan, the National Opera and Ballet, and Circus Treurdier, and has performed with LeineRoebana and Nynke Laverman & Sytze Pruiksma. Geneviève studied with Monique Bartels and Melissa Phelps at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague and the Royal College of Music in London. With the Ragazze Quartet, she also completed the full-time course of the Dutch String Quartet Academy studying with Stefan Metz and Marc Danel. She has received invaluable help in the development of her playing through masterclasses with Jean-Guihen Queyras, Bernard Greenhouse, Luc-Marie Aguera, and the Kronos Quartet, as well as with directors Ria Marks and Titus Tiel Groenestege. Geneviève plays a Hippolyte Silvestre cello from 1865, made available to her by the Dutch Musical Instruments Foundation.

Kalle de Bie (1994) started playing the cello aged 6. From 2008, he studied at the Conservatory of Amsterdam with Jeroen den Herder, Jelena Očić, and Dmitri Ferschtman. Kalle finished his studies at the Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst in Vienna, studying with the acclaimed cello pedagogue Reinhard Latzko. In October 2016, Kalle was awarded the Start-in-Splendor Prize at the National Cello Competition, thus winning a carte blanche in Splendor Amsterdam. He created a musical and visual journey through the surrealist world of French composer Henri Dutilleux. Previously, Kalle has also been a part of other various projects that included film, poetry, and dance. He is the cellist of the Brackman Trio and the Marigold Piano Quartet. Kalle also plays with the collective Pynarello.