[Peter Pinteric | Andrew Ascenzo | Joelle Kee | Esther Choi | Melanie Barney | Kwangwon Kim | Yoon Woo Kim | Evan Lamberton | Eric Fujita-Kim]
Andrew Ascenzo, cellist

Profile

Cellist Andrew Ascenzo is quickly becoming one of Toronto’s most eclectic and versatile young performers. In the fall of 2015, he will appear as a soloist with the Brampton Concert Band performing the rarely heard Cello Concerto by Friederich Gulda, as well as a soloist with the York Symphony Orchestra performing Haydn’s C Major Cello Concerto; a staple of the cello repertoire. A supporter of contemporary classical music, he will also be partaking in a rare performance of distinguished French composer Phillipe Leroux’s De La Texture, a spacial work for chamber group, directed by Wallace Halladay at The Music Gallery in Toronto. Amongst other recitals and performances, Andrew will also be performing solo improvisations with a looping pedal at intimate and alternative venues such as Musideum.

As a performing artist, Andrew’s breadth of experience speaks for itself. He has performed in major venues across Canada as a soloist, chamber musician, and orchestral player. In recent years he has been the principal cellist for the University of Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Koffler Chamber Orchestra conducted by the late Jacques Israelievitch, and is currently a member of the Toronto Concert Orchestra led by Maestro Kerry Stratton. Andrew is an active chamber musician, often performing in several different configurations and most recently collaborating with members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the Canadian Opera Company Orchestra to perform standard repertoire as well as premiere a new work by young Canadian composer Ivan Barbotin. Andrew has also been the recipient of the Felix Galimir
Chamber Music Award at the University of Toronto.

Andrew is currently working towards completing his Doctorate of Musical Arts at the University of Toronto, studying with Professor Shauna Rolston. He holds both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree from U of T. He has also studied privately with David Hetherington, as well as spending some time studying jazz and general improvisation with Matt Brubeck. Andrew has attended the Banff Summer Music program and had the privilege to study with some of the great cello masters, including Aldo Parisot, Janos Starker, and Raphael Wallfisch.

Andrew’s other interests in music include playing the guitar and drumset, each of which he has done with several bands in the last ten years. As a drummer, he has performed as a pit orchestra musician with local theatres in productions of Gypsy, Bye Bye Birdie, Godspell, and West Side Story. Beyond music, Andrew is an avid fan of Baseball and Soccer, and when he’s not performing in the summer he can usually be found at the Skydome catching a Blue Jays game.

 

Copyright 2019 by Toronto Messiaen Ensemble