CANADA
Matthew Christakos was born on February 10, 2000, in Ottawa, Canada. Winner of the 2019 Canada Council for the Arts Michael Measures 1st prize, Matthew is an undergraduate student of Peter Wiley and Gary Hoffman at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, after studying with Carter Brey at the same institution. He recently won the 2nd prize in the Canadian Music Competition’s 2019 Stepping Stone.
In 2021, Matthew was a fellow at the Aspen Music Festival and School. He spent the summer of 2019 touring Canada and Spain as a soloist with the National Youth Orchestra of Canada, under the baton of Michael Francis, performing the Brahms Double Concerto with violinist Alison Kim. As a teacher, Matthew was on the cello faculty at the Music Niagara’s 2020 Performance Academy in Ontario, and is currently on faculty at The Dream School in Philadelphia.
Matthew studied with David Hetherington and Hans Jørgen Jensen at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s Phil and Eli Taylor Performance Academy for Young Artists in Toronto. Matthew won the Taylor Academy’s 2017 Concerto Competition and performed as a soloist with the Academy Chamber Orchestra and Ivars Taurins at the Koerner Hall. He received the 1st prize at the 2017 Toronto Kiwanis Music Festival President’s Trophy Competition.
PROGRAM:
ONLINE ROUND
Piatti Caprice Op. 25 No. 3
Bach Cello Suite No. 3 in C major BWV 1009
Haydn Cello Concerto No. 2 in D major Hob. VIIb/2
Schumann Adagio and Allegro in A flat major Op. 70
Debussy Cello Sonata in D minor L. 135
Crumb Sonata for Solo Cello
SEMIFINAL
Enescu Cello Sonata No. 2 in C major Op. 26
Brahms Cello Sonata No. 2 in F major Op. 99
Popper Elfentanz Op. 39
FINAL
Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1 in E flat Major Op. 107
