The Cello Sherpa Podcast

Cello and piano can be a brutal matchup when nobody makes room, but when the balance is right it becomes one of the most revealing duo formats in music. We sit down with cellist Matt Haimovitz and pianist Christopher O’Riley to trace how their partnership started, why it clicked so fast, and what they’ve learned from years of turning rehearsal into a kind of shared research lab.
We talk about building programs that cross borders without losing rigor, from Shuffle Play Listen to projects that pull ideas from Beethoven, contemporary music, and arranged songs by artists like Radiohead. Chris shares the pianist’s responsibility for momentum and for protecting the “lyric impulse,” and Matt explains how true collaboration feels less like compromise and more like testing ideas until the music tells you what it needs.
Then we go deep on Bach Dialogues: Bach sonatas reimagined with a five-string Baroque cello piccolo and the clavichord, an instrument Bach loved for its dynamic control and string-like touch. They unpack the realities of gut strings, pitch standards like A=415, why the clavichord is both expressive and famously quiet, and how modern recording and modeling technology can help bring an “impossible” instrument pairing to life onstage and in the studio.
If you care about chamber music, historically informed performance, Bach interpretation, or simply how great musicians listen to each other, this conversation is full of practical insight. Subscribe, share this with a musician friend, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.
For more information on Matt: https://www.matthaimovitz.com/
You can also find Matt on Facebook and Instagram: @Matthaimovitz
Youtube: @Matthaimovitz
For more information on Chris: https://christopheroriley.com/
You can also find Chrison Facebook and Instagram: @christopher_oriley_
Youtube: @ChristopherORiley360
To download "The Bach Dialogues https://www.pentatonemusic.com/product/the-bach-dialogues-digital-only-album/
If you are looking for in person/virtual cello lessons, or orchestral repertoire audition coachings, check out www.theCelloSherpa.com
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads & YouTube: @theCelloSherpa

For more information on our sponsor: www.CLEAResources.com

One missed signup and a burst of kid-level courage can set an entire life in motion. Cellist and composer Dorothy Lawson grew up in Toronto surrounded by classical music and strong school music programs, but she didn’t “choose” cello in some grand, cinematic way. She simply chose to participate a day late, and the next opening happened to be cello. From there, the path becomes a masterclass in how musicians are formed: early access, social learning, and the kind of training that turns curiosity into craft.

We also get into the part of music that’s harder to explain but easier to feel. Dorothy shares research from a university residency where heart-rate monitors track performers and audiences in real time, showing surprisingly synchronized rises and falls. It’s a powerful lens on why live performance matters, why vibrations and attention change a room, and why the concert hall can still be a place of real human connection even in a distracted age.

From Vienna to Juilliard to New York City, Dorothy breaks down how NYC can sharpen an artist, and how that environment helped shape Ethel, the genre-bending string quartet she co-founded. We talk contemporary classical music, crossover language that welcomes new listeners, collaborations that center Native American composers, and the blunt economics that made classical programming feel predictable until presenters and artists started taking risks again. If you care about chamber music, music education, Juilliard, New York artistry, and the future of the string quartet, you’ll leave with both ideas and practical perspective.

Subscribe to The Cello Sherpa Podcast, share this conversation with a musician friend, and leave a rating or review so more listeners can find the show.
For more information on Dorothy: https://ethelcentral.org/dorothy-lawson/
You can also find Dorothy on Facebook and Instagram: @ethelcentral
Youtube: @ethelcentral
If you are looking for in person/virtual cello lessons, or orchestral repertoire audition coachings, check out www.theCelloSherpa.com
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads & YouTube: @theCelloSherpa

For more information on our sponsor: www.CLEAResources.com

A kid gets asked to “play a scale” by one of the greatest cellists who ever lived and has no idea what a scale is. That moment could have ended in embarrassment and retreat, but for Ole Akahoshi it became the beginning of a lifelong education in craft, taste, and what it really means to make the cello sing.

The Cello Sherpa Podcast Host, Joel Dallow, sits down with Ole Akahoshi, cellist and faculty at the Yale School of Music and Manhattan School of Music Prep Division, to trace his path from a music-filled childhood in Germany to studying with Pierre Fournier in Geneva. Ole shares what Fournier was like in lessons, what got written into his parts, and why those markings still matter. We also talk about the voice behind tone production, how phrasing and “good taste” shape interpretation, and why some technical ideas only click years later.

From there, we shift into Ole’s teaching world at Yale, including how the undergraduate studio fits into Yale’s unique setup, and what he listens for when a student is chasing speed and flash. Ole lays out practical fundamentals like breathing, balance, and tension and release, plus a teaching philosophy built around curiosity and better questions. We also get his honest take on competitions, judging, confidence, and a pair of career-defining prompts he asks every freshman: who are you, and what do you want?

If you enjoyed this conversation, subscribe, share it with a cellist or teacher, and leave a review so more musicians can find the show. What’s one foundation you want to rebuild in your playing?
For more information on Ole: https://music.yale.edu/people/ole-akahoshi
If you are looking for in person/virtual cello lessons, or orchestral repertoire audition coachings, check out www.theCelloSherpa.com

He picked orchestra because he thought there would be drums and that mix-up changed his life. Cellist Tommy Mesa joins us to trace the real arc from an accidental start in Miami to major career milestones, including joining the Manhattan School of Music faculty, winning the Sphinx Competition, and earning top honors like the Avery Fisher Career Grant. Along the way, we talk about what makes a classical music career sustainable when you don’t begin at age four and how the right environment can accelerate growth.

We also get a front-row look at high-pressure professional life: Tommy shares what it’s like to prepare massive repertoire on tight timelines, and he walks through the practice planning habits that keep him steady. We dig into competition preparation, performance anxiety, and why he believes you play your best when you focus on communicating ideas rather than chasing prizes. His advice is specific and usable, from writing a minute-by-minute practice plan to pairing technique work with the key demands of your current repertoire.

Community is another big theme. We talk about the Sphinx Organization as more than a competition, the importance of mentorship and peer networks, and how identity and Cuban American family history shape the way Tommy approaches opportunity. We close with what’s next for him, including commissioning new music like a Michael Abels cello concerto and an immigrant composer project designed for both concert programming and recording.

Subscribe for more conversations for advancing cellists and serious classical musicians, share this with a friend who needs a practice reset, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show. What part of Tommy’s story hit closest to home for you?
For more information on Tommy: https://tommymesa.com/
You can also find Tommy on Facebook and Instagram: @Tommy_j_mesa
Youtube: @TommyMesa
If you are looking for in person/virtual cello lessons, or orchestral repertoire audition coachings, check out www.theCelloSherpa.com
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads & YouTube: @theCelloSherpa

For more information on our sponsor: www.CLEAResources.com

Classical music can change a life, but it can also quietly decide whose life gets changed. The Cello Sherpa Podcast Host, Joel Dallow, sits down with Stanford Thompson, founder of Play On Philly and executive director of Equity Arc, to talk about the moment he realized music isn’t neutral and why “work hard” is only part of the story when access to training, instruments, time, and insider mentorship is so uneven.

Stanford takes us from a childhood shaped by disciplined music educators, to high-level preparation through a talent development program, to the intense excellence and isolation of the Curtis Institute of Music. Along the way, we unpack the invisible advantages that shape auditions and careers: knowing what a panel listens for, learning the unwritten rules, getting the right coaching early, and building social capital that opens doors. We also talk frankly about gatekeeping versus stewardship and what it means to invite someone to the table when they’re not already in your circle.

From there, we get practical about solutions. Stanford breaks down the Play On Philly model inspired by El Sistema and why long-term, high-intensity, tuition-free ensemble training can be transformative. He explains Equity Arc’s focus on rigorous musical preparation paired with identity-affirming mentorship, including how musicians learn to interpret feedback, persist through bias, handle rejection, and prepare for the real decision points that determine who reaches orchestra finals and who falls off the pipeline.

If you care about music education equity, diversity in classical music, orchestra auditions, and building fellowship programs that produce measurable outcomes, this conversation is for you. Subscribe, share this episode with a musician or educator, and leave a review. What part of the classical music pipeline most needs to change next?
For more information on Stanford: https://www.stanfordthompson.com/
You can also find Stanford on Facebook and Instagram: @sltstanford
If you are looking for in person/virtual cello lessons, or orchestral repertoire audition coachings, check out www.theCelloSherpa.com
Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Threads & YouTube: @theCelloSherpa

For more information on our sponsor: www.CLEAResources.com