{"id":20393,"date":"2022-10-13T17:22:27","date_gmt":"2022-10-13T15:22:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/?p=173628"},"modified":"2022-10-13T17:53:10","modified_gmt":"2022-10-13T15:53:10","slug":"cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/rss_feed\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him\/","title":{"rendered":"Cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason on the music that shaped him"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>

By BBC Music Magazine\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 13 October 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

\n\n

Born in 1999, Sheku Kanneh-Mason is the foremost cellist of his generation. After winning BBC Young Musician of the Year<\/a> in 2016, in 2018 Sheku played at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle<\/a>, and in 2020 he was awarded an MBE for services to music. <\/strong><\/p>\n

As well as solo albums for Decca, Sheku has made recordings with his talented siblings. Indeed, the extraordinary story of the Kanneh-Mason family<\/strong><\/a> has been told in several TV documentaries. Sheku\u2019s solo album, Song<\/em>, came out in September 2022 . That same month, Sheku was to perform at the Last Night of the Proms<\/strong><\/a>. However, the event was cancelled following the death of Queen Elizabeth II<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>Here, Sheku discusses the music that has shaped his life and career.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I started playing the cello at six and <a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/six-of-the-best-recordings-of-elgars-cello-concerto\/"\"><b>Elgar\u2019s<\/b>\u00a0<strong>Cello Concerto<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0was the first piece of classical music that I fell in love with and felt I understood. Of course, my feelings towards the piece have changed as I\u2019ve got older \u2013 performing and recording it has taken\u00a0my relationship with the work\u00a0to another level of connection. It\u2019s shaped who I am as a musician.<\/p>\n<section class=\""highlight\"><div class=\""highlight__content\" editor-content=\"\"> \n<ul><li><strong><a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/best-cello-works\/"\">Six of the best cello works<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/prince-charles-discusses-his-experience-of-playing-the-cello-rather-badly-in-beethovens-fifth-symphony\/"\">Prince Charles discusses his experience of playing the cello \u2018rather badly\u2019 in Beethoven\u2019s Fifth Symphony<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/who-are-the-members-of-the-kanneh-mason-family\/"\">Who are the members of the Kanneh-Mason family?<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/news\/sheku-kanneh-mason-explores-elgars-hometown-in-the-malvern-hills-on-countryfile\/"\">Sheku Kanneh-Mason explores Elgar\u2019s hometown in the Malvern Hills on Countryfile<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul><p> <\/p><\/div> <\/section><p>\u2018I listened to the <a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/jacqueline-du-pre\/"\"><strong>Jacqueline du Pr\u00e9<\/strong><\/a> recording constantly and when I was younger I suppose I tried to copy it, but her way of playing and her interpretation are so individual that I learnt more from her approach to the music than from specific things she does with the piece.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018We grew up listening to recordings of the Elgar Cello Concerto, Beethoven Violin Concerto with Itzhak Perlman, and <a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/best-recordings-rachmaninovs-piano-concerto-no-2\/"\"><strong>Rachmaninov\u2019s Second Piano Concerto<\/strong><\/a> with Vladimir Ashkenazy. My brother Braimah plays the violin, my sister Isata plays the piano, and I play the cello so I\u2019m sure it\u2019s no coincidence \u2013 that this was the music we were exposed to!<\/p>\n<iframe title=\""Britain's\" got=\"\" talent=\"\" s09e07=\"\" the=\"\" kanneh-masons=\"\" six=\"\" piece=\"\" family=\"\" classical=\"\" orchestra=\"\" width=\""200"\" height=\""113"\" src=\""https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/J4s_4nKx-CY?feature=oembed"\" frameborder=\""0"\" allow=\""accelerometer;\" autoplay=\"\" clipboard-write=\"\" encrypted-media=\"\" gyroscope=\"\" picture-in-picture=\"\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/>\n<p><strong>\u2018<a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/recordings\/schuberts-trout-quintet-a-guide-to-schuberts-piano-quintet-in-a-and-its-best-recordings\/"\">Schubert\u2019s \u2018Trout\u2019 Quintet<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0is another piece from my childhood, which I remember hearing particularly on car journeys. My mum signed us up to a week-long swimming course one half term, and the journey was about half an hour, exactly the length of the \u2018Trout\u2019. We listened to it twice a day for a week and I really got to know it. It\u2019s such a joyful piece. We wanted Jeneba,\u00a0our fifth sibling,\u00a0to learn the double bass purely so we could play this piece, but my mum said, \u2018No, it\u2019s too big.\u2019 Jeneba now plays the piano!<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I had a chance to work intensively on <b>Dvorak\u2019s String Quartet <\/b><strong>No. 13 in G major<\/strong> when I was about 15 or 16, on an Easter chamber music course run by MusicWorks. It\u2019s full of character, variety, range, with some incredibly dark moments and some incredibly joyful ones. It\u2019s quite extreme. I\u2019ve only played it that once because I don\u2019t have a quartet that I play regularly with.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018I played <a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/politics-dmitri-shostakovich\/"\"><b>Shostakovich\u2019s<\/b><\/a>\u00a0<strong>Cello Concerto No. 1<\/strong> for the BBC Young Musician competition in 2016, so you could say it changed my life, but I know\u00a0Shostakovich\u00a0more through his symphonies and his string quartets. The scale of his symphonies has such an impact on me, particularly\u00a0No. 11. You have to give it your full attention, to experience it with your whole being. It can be exhausting to listen to, but incredibly moving.<\/p>\n<iframe title=\""Sheku\" kanneh-mason=\"\" winner=\"\" bbc=\"\" young=\"\" musician=\"\" shostakovich=\"\" cello=\"\" concerto=\"\" no=\"\" width=\""200"\" height=\""113"\" src=\""https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Q6GJgOXBi2U?feature=oembed"\" frameborder=\""0"\" allow=\""accelerometer;\" autoplay=\"\" clipboard-write=\"\" encrypted-media=\"\" gyroscope=\"\" picture-in-picture=\"\" allowfullscreen=\"\"\/>\n<p>\u2018My experience of symphonies is mostly from listening because I haven\u2019t played much in orchestras. I played in the cello section of <a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/chineke-orchestra-what-the-bme-ensemble-is-doing-to-shine-a-light-on-the-lack-of-diversity-in-classical-music\/"\"><strong>Chineke!<\/strong><\/a> when I was 16 or 17. It was my first professional concert and we performed Beethoven\u2019s Seventh Symphony \u2013 I learnt so much from being with this excellent orchestra. In 2017 I was the soloist in their BBC Proms concert, playing Dvo\u0159\u00e1k\u2019s Rondo in G minor.<\/p>\n<p>\u2018The <a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/artists\/the-london-symphony-orchestra-five-famous-conductors\/"\"><strong>London Symphony Orchestra (LSO)<\/strong><\/a> and Simon Rattle are an amazing team \u2013 we recorded the Elgar Concerto together in 2020 and I recently played my first live concert with them in Trafalgar Square.<\/p>\n<p><strong>\u2018Mozart\u2019s<\/strong>\u00a0<strong>Requiem<\/strong>\u00a0has always been my mum\u2019s favourite piece and even as a small child I loved it too. I could tell that it was full of tragedy, but some bits are so beautiful and touching, it\u2019s just a masterpiece. My new album, <a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/reviews\/chamber\/song-sheku-kanneh-mason\/"\"><em><strong>Song<\/strong><\/em><\/a>, contains music that is personal to me and obviously my family has been a strong influence \u2013 the folk tune, \u2018Myfanwy\u2019 \u2013 which I\u2019ve arranged for three cellos, is my Welsh grandmother\u2019s favourite song. It\u2019s nice to be able to put together an album of all the music I\u2019ve been listening to and thinking of for many years.\u2019<\/p>\n<section class=\""highlight\"><div class=\""highlight__content\" editor-content=\"\"> \n<ul><li><strong><a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/story-behind-mozarts-requiem\/"\">The mystery of Mozart\u2019s Requiem<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/articles\/five-essential-works-dvo-k\/"\">Five essential works by Dvo\u0159\u00e1k<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\""https:\/\/www.classical-music.com\/features\/works\/abel-selaocoe-on-the-pieces-of-music-every-cellist-should-play\/"\">Abel Selaocoe on the pieces of music every cellist should play<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul><p> <\/p><\/div> <\/section><h2><strong>Sheku Kanneh-Mason\u2019s choices<\/strong><\/h2>\n<h3><strong>Elgar <em>Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Jacqueline du Pr\u00e9 (cello), London Symphony Orchestra\/Barbirolli<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Warner Classics 5555272<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-container"\" data-position=\""adhoc"\" hidden=\"\"> <h5 class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-title\" monetizer-title=\"\" style=\""background-color:\" color:=\"\"\/> <div id=\""monetizer__deals"\" data-type=\""price-comparison"\" data-config=\"'{"shopId":"1378","market":"gbp_en","template":"default","searchKeywords":"https:\\\/\\\/www.amazon.co.uk\\\/Elgar-Concerto-Pictures-Overture-Cockaigne\\\/dp\\\/B010OVTNES\\\/ref=sr_1_1","excludeKeywords":"","geolocation":true,"limit":"4","priceRange":"3.5-6.5","sid":"term-classicalmusic-4-pcs-txt-pos"}'\"\/> <div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-explanatory-text\" body-copy-extra-small=\"\" editor-content=\"\"\/><\/div> <h3><strong>Schubert<\/strong> <em>Piano Quintet in A major, D667, \u2018The Trout\u2019<\/em><\/h3>\n<p>DVD with Daniel Barenboim (piano), Itzhak Perlman (violin), Pinchas Zukerman (violin), Jacqueline Du Pr\u00e9 (cello), Zubin Mehta (double bass), Andreas Schmidt (piano), Vladimir Ashkenazy (piano)<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Christopher Nupen Films A13CND<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-container"\" data-position=\""adhoc"\" hidden=\"\"> <h5 class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-title\" monetizer-title=\"\" style=\""background-color:\" color:=\"\"\/> <div id=\""monetizer__deals"\" data-type=\""price-comparison"\" data-config=\"'{"shopId":"1378","market":"gbp_en","template":"default","searchKeywords":"https:\\\/\\\/www.ebay.co.uk\\\/itm\\\/284942491621","excludeKeywords":"","geolocation":true,"limit":"4","priceRange":"11.2-20.8","sid":"term-classicalmusic-4-pcs-txt-pos"}'\"\/> <div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-explanatory-text\" body-copy-extra-small=\"\" editor-content=\"\"\/><\/div> <h3><strong>Dvo\u0159\u00e1k<\/strong> <em>String Quartet No. 13 in G major, Op. 106<\/em><\/h3>\n<p>Pavel Haas Quartet<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Supraphon SU40382<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-container"\" data-position=\""adhoc"\" hidden=\"\"> <h5 class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-title\" monetizer-title=\"\" style=\""background-color:\" color:=\"\"\/> <div id=\""monetizer__deals"\" data-type=\""price-comparison"\" data-config=\"'{"shopId":"1378","market":"gbp_en","template":"default","searchKeywords":"https:\\\/\\\/www.amazon.co.uk\\\/Dvorak-String-Quartets-Op-American\\\/dp\\\/B0043XCKJO\\\/ref=sr_1_2","excludeKeywords":"","geolocation":true,"limit":"4","priceRange":"9.8-18.2","sid":"term-classicalmusic-4-pcs-txt-pos"}'\"\/> <div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-explanatory-text\" body-copy-extra-small=\"\" editor-content=\"\"\/><\/div> <h3><strong>Shostakovich<\/strong> <em>Symphony No. 11 in G minor, Op. 103<\/em><\/h3>\n<p>Berlin Philharmonic\/Bychkov<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>Philips 4209352<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-container"\" data-position=\""adhoc"\" hidden=\"\"> <h5 class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-title\" monetizer-title=\"\" style=\""background-color:\" color:=\"\"\/> <div id=\""monetizer__deals"\" data-type=\""price-comparison"\" data-config=\"'{"shopId":"1378","market":"gbp_en","template":"default","searchKeywords":"https:\\\/\\\/www.amazon.co.uk\\\/Shostakovich-Symphony-11\\\/dp\\\/B00000E3NC\\\/ref=sr_1_4","excludeKeywords":"","geolocation":true,"limit":"4","priceRange":"14-26","sid":"term-classicalmusic-4-pcs-txt-pos"}'\"\/> <div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-explanatory-text\" body-copy-extra-small=\"\" editor-content=\"\"\/><\/div> <h3><strong>Mozart<\/strong> <em>Requiem in D minor, K626<\/em><\/h3>\n<p>Netherlands Radio Choir & Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra\/Jansons<\/p>\n<p><em><strong>RCO Live RCO14002<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-container"\" data-position=\""adhoc"\" hidden=\"\"> <h5 class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-title\" monetizer-title=\"\" style=\""background-color:\" color:=\"\"\/> <div id=\""monetizer__deals"\" data-type=\""price-comparison"\" data-config=\"'{"shopId":"1378","market":"gbp_en","template":"default","searchKeywords":"https:\\\/\\\/www.amazon.co.uk\\\/Mozart-Requiem-minor-KV-626\\\/dp\\\/B00IUI0J50\\\/ref=sr_1_2","excludeKeywords":"","geolocation":true,"limit":"4","priceRange":"9.1-16.9","sid":"term-classicalmusic-4-pcs-txt-pos"}'\"\/> <div class=\""monetizer__price-comparison-explanatory-text\" body-copy-extra-small=\"\" editor-content=\"\"\/><\/div> <p>\u00a0<\/p><\/body><\/html>\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator\"\/>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By BBC Music Magazine Published: Thursday, 13 October 2022 at 12:00 am Born in 1999, Sheku Kanneh-Mason is the foremost cellist of his generation. After winning BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2016, in 2018 Sheku played at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, and in 2020 he was awarded an MBE […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":20394,"template":"","categories":[1],"acf":{"readingTimeMinutes":"5"},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022\/10\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him.jpg",625,350,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022\/10\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022\/10\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him-300x168.jpg",300,168,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022\/10\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him.jpg",625,350,false],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022\/10\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him.jpg",625,350,false],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022\/10\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him.jpg",625,350,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2022\/10\/cellist-sheku-kanneh-mason-on-the-music-that-shaped-him.jpg",625,350,false]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"By BBC Music Magazine Published: Thursday, 13 October 2022 at 12:00 am Born in 1999, Sheku Kanneh-Mason is the foremost cellist of his generation. After winning BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2016, in 2018 Sheku played at the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, and in 2020 he was awarded an MBE…","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/20393"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/20394"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20393"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcmusicmagazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20393"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}