Was
born in Heidelberg/Germany and started her musical training at the age
of six. Very soon she chose the cello as her principal instrument. She
studied with Christoph Henkel at the Staatliche Hochschule für
Musik in Freiburg, where she graduated as a performing artist, and in London
with William Pleeth, where she received an ARCM diploma at the Royal College
of Music. She won several grants prices and scholarships, which enabled
her to take part in master classes and chamber music courses with Janós
Starker, Boris Pergamenschikov, Miklós Pérényi, Siegfried
Palm, András Schiff, Bruno Canino and others. A three-months’
stay at the Banff Center for the Arts in Canada inspired her to widen her
horizons by collaborating with musicians from other cultures, also on an
improvisational basis. As a soloist and chamber musician she participated
i. a. in the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, Biennale di Venezia, Berliner
Festwochen, Salzburger Festspiele (Zeitfluß Festival), and in the
St. Petersburg Spring Festival. In 1988 she formed a duo together with
pianist Christine Olbrich, with whom she gained wide recognition for performances
of both the classical and the contemporary repertoire. From 1991 to 1996
she collaborated with the Ensemble Modern /Frankfurt a.M. Since 1996 she
has been first cellist of the Heidelberger Sinfoniker. In 1997 she founded
the Trio Ascolto (Susanne Gärtner, flute, Christine Olbrich, piano).
Collaborations also include composers such as Earle Brown, Luca Tessadrelli,
Matthew Burtner, Violeta Dinescu, and Martin Münch, who have written
new pieces for her and her ensembles.
Dorothea
Von Albrecht