“Technically flawless, he’s totally under the skin of the composers’ idioms.” - The Strad
BIOGRAPHY
Colombian cellist Santiago Cañón-Valencia is a prolific soloist, composer, commissioner, recording artist, painter and photographer described as "technically flawless… totally under the skin of the composers’ idioms" (The Strad). A 2022 BBC New Generation Artist, Cañón-Valencia was born in Bogotá in 1995 and made his orchestral debut as a soloist when he was six years old with the Orquesta Filarmónica de Bogotá, blossoming into an accomplished musician praised as “an artist from whom sound and texture flow with ease and authenticity” (The Whole Note) and “one of the most promising young cellists” (Forbes Colombia).
Among his many accolades, Cañón-Valencia was Silver Medalist and “Audience Favorite” at the 2019 XVI International Tchaikovsky Competition; recipient of the 2018 Starker Foundation Award; Third Prize honoree at the 2017 Queen Elisabeth International Competition; First Prize winner at the Carlos Prieto International Cello Competition, Beijing International Music Competition, Gisborne International Music Competition, and Lennox International Young Artists Competition; and a major prize-winner of the Sphinx, Casals, Johansen, Cassadó, and Adam Competitions.
Cañón-Valencia’s international solo career has taken him around the world to perform with such orchestras as the Mariinsky Orchestra with Valery Gergiev, Frankfurt Radio Orchestra with Christoph Eschenbach, Brussels Philharmonic with Stephane Deneve, SWR Symphonieorchester with Andris Poga, Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra with Nikolai Alexeev, Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Antwerp Symphony with Muhai Tang and Moscow Soloists Chamber Orchestra with Yuri Bashmet, as well as all of the major orchestras in his native Colombia.
Upcoming highlights include performances throughout Europe, including his debut at London’s Wigmore Hall and a recital at St. George’s Bristol with pianist Naoko Sonoda; New Generation Artist Showcase concerts and broadcasts with the BBC Symphony Orchestra with conductor Pierre Bleuse in London and Ireland’s Ulster Orchestra led by Jac Van Steen; a solo recital at Italy’s Teatro Massimo; debuts with the Danish Chamber Orchestra at the Cartagena Festival and the Belgrade Philharmonic; and appearances with the Latvian National Orchestra, Spain’s RTVE Orchestra at Teatro Monumental, and Serbia’s Belgrade Philharmonic.
In the U.S., he appears as Guest Artist at the International Cello Institute in Minnesota, performs recitals at San Diego’s Athenaeum Music & Arts Library and Massachusetts’s Shalin Liu Performance Center, and returns to the Alabama Symphony with frequent collaborator Carlos Izcaray. He will also perform two dates in South Korea at the Seosomun Shrine History Museum in Seoul as part of the Mostly Cello Festival before returning to Colombia for two release concerts celebrating his latest album, Ascenso, at Teatro Metropolitano and Teatro Mayor and a performance with the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia. In summer 2024, he celebrates the 100th birthday of Janos Starker in events at Lotte Concert Hall with the Seoul Philharmonic in Korea and Suntory’s Blue Rose Hall in Japan.
Passionate about collaboration with living composers, Cañón-Valencia performed the world premiere of Carlos Izcaray’s commissioned cello concerto Stringmaster as the featured soloist with the Alabama Symphony Orchestra. He gave the Colombian premiere of Ginastera’s Cello Concerto No. 2 with the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia, premiered Jorge Pinzón’s Cello Concerto “Rapsodia a los 4 Elementos” at the Cartagena International Music Festival, and premiered Gulda’s Cello Concerto in Auckland, New Zealand with the Auckland Chamber Orchestra.
As a recording artist, Cañón-Valencia enjoys immersing himself in both known and unknown works, with a particular interest in commissioning new pieces, arranging pieces, and writing his own music. His latest recording Ascenso, released in November 2022 on Sono Luminus, showcases pieces arranged and written by Cañón-Valencia himself, as well as works commissioned and written for him by contemporary Colombian composers. Earlier recordings include Santiago’s debut release Solo, for which The Strad acclaimed him as “technically flawless” and “totally under the skin of the composers’ idioms”; an album with pianist Andrea Lucchesini dedicated to Schubert and Beethoven for the Egea Label; and an album of Russian cello sonatas and popular pieces of the cello repertoire with pianist Katherine Austin for the Atoll label.
Cañón-Valencia’s major musical mentors have been Henryk Zarzycki in Colombia, James Tennant in New Zealand, Andres Diaz in the United States, and Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt at the Kronberg Academy in Germany. He has been sponsored by the Mayra & Edmundo Esquenazi Scholarship through the Salvi Foundation since 2011.
Last edited: 12/23
CONCERTS
Jun 9, WÜrzburg, ger
Residenz, Weißer Saal
Schubert Quintet in C Major D. 956 with Marmen Quartet @ Würzburg Mozartfest
JUN 27, TURIN, ITA
Principi di Piemonte
Solo cello recital. Works by: Bach, Ponce de León, Crumb, Golijov, Cañón-Valencia
MORE INFO SOON
Jul 5, Seoul, KOR
Lotte Concert Hall
Haydn D Major Concerto with Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra & cond. Samuel Seungwon Lee
JUL 10, Cheltenham, eng
Pittville Pump Room
Recital with pianist Naoko Sonoda. Works by: Bach, Schnittke, Pärt & Cañón-Valencia
JUL 30, VeszprÉm, HUN
County Hall, St. Stephen’s Room
Solo cello recital. Works by: Bach, Ponce de León, Crumb, Golijov, Cañón-Valencia
AUG 23, GALICIA, esp
Catedral Basílica de la Asunción
Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations with Sinfonia de Galicia & cond. José Miguel Pérez-Sierra
aug 24, Galicia, esp
Auditorio Municipal
Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations with Sinfonia de Galicia & cond. José Miguel Pérez-Sierra
Sep 15, tHOUSAND oAKS, ca, usa
Scherr Forum
Camerata Pacifica tour with Paul Huang & Gilles Vonsattel. Works by: Ravel & Debussy
Sep 17, San Marino, CA, USA
The Huntington
Camerata Pacifica tour with Paul Huang & Gilles Vonsattel. Works by: Ravel & Debussy
Sep 19, LOS ANGELES, CA, USA
Colburn School
Camerata Pacifica tour with Paul Huang & Gilles Vonsattel. Works by: Ravel & Debussy
SEP 20, SANTA BARBARA, CA, USA
Music Academy
Camerata Pacifica tour with Paul Huang & Gilles Vonsattel. Works by: Ravel & Debussy
OCT 3, Mérida, esp
Palacio de Congresos de Mérida
Shostakovich Concerto No. 1 with cond. Juan Pablo Valencia & Orquesta de Extremadura
OCT 4, Villanueva de la Serena, ESP
Palacio de Congresos de Villanueva de la Serena
Shostakovich Concerto No. 1 with cond. Juan Pablo Valencia & Orquesta de Extremadura
OCT 11, PASSAU, GER
Grosser Rathaussaal Passau
Elgar Concerto with cond. Ektoras Tartanis & Niederbayerische Philharmonie
oct 19, snape, eng
Britten Studio, Snape Maltings
Concert with Fergus McCreadie Trio & Chaos String Quartet
oct 20, Snape, Eng
Britten Studio, Snape Maltings
Solo recital. Works by: Bach, Golijov & Cañón-Valencia
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String Quintet in C Major D. 956 with Chaos String Quartet
OCT 25, EVANSTON, IL, USA
First Presbyterian Church
Recital with pianist Victor Asunción. Works by: Duparc, Debussy, Psathas, Schnittke, Márquez & Stravinsky
Oct 27, Washington D.C., USA
Phillips Collection
Recital with pianist Victor Asunción. Works by: Duparc, Debussy, Psathas, Schnittke, Márquez & Stravinsky
NOV 8 - 10, PHOENIX, AZ, USA
Symphony Hall
Tchaikovsky Rococo Variations with cond. Julian Rachlin & Phoenix Symphony
NOV 13 - 17, BRUSSELS, BEL
Flagey
Guest artist at the Brussels Cello Festival
NOV 25 - 30, PEREIRA, COL
Guest artist at the Pereira Music Fest
MORE INFO SOON
DEC 10, London, ENG
Maida Vale Studios
Lutosławski Cello Concerto with BBC Symphony Orchestra and cond. Martyn Brabbins
MORE INFO SOON
MEDIA
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Recordings
New release on Deutsche Grammophon
Arvo Pärt’s Fratres (version for cello & piano) with pianist Naoko Sonoda.
Paintings
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