About

Praised by Cleveland Classical for her “brilliant technical prowess,” cellist Sophie Benn has a special interest in blurring the lines between performance, education, and historical scholarship in order to create compelling programs and special projects.

In the 2015/16 season, Sophie is serving as interim principal cellist of CityMusic Cleveland. As a performer, Sophie has a particular interest in new music. In addition to solo projects, she has served as cellist for acclaimed contemporary music ensemble Ars Futura. She has also worked with Joel Sachs, Miranda Cuckson, and Marc Ponthus, as well as members of the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), Alarm Will Sound, Yarn/Wire, and the Kronos Quartet.

Passionate about outreach and education, Sophie has worked as a presenter for CIM's Distance Learning program, which brings educational programming to schools and community centers around the world through videoconference technology. She also served as the Director of Outreach for ChamberFest Cleveland. Sophie can frequently be found performing in Classical Revolution Cleveland's concert series at the Happy Dog, a bar on the west side of Cleveland.

Sophie recently received a Master’s of Music degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music, studying with Richard Weiss. She graduated magna cum laude from Rice University with an undergraduate degree in both performance and music history, where she worked with Norman Fischer and David Ferris. Her senior thesis was on the posthumous reception of Mendelssohn’s music.

She has served as principal cellist of the Cleveland Women’s Orchestra, principal of orchestras at both CIM and Rice, and assistant principal of the Aspen Conducting Academy Orchestra. She has also worked as a substitute cellist for the San Antonio Symphony. Sophie is cultivating a budding interest in performing on period instruments, and plays with the CIM/CWRU Baroque ensembles, under the guidance of Julie Andrijeski, René Schiffer, and Debra Nagy.

Music

Sophie plays in all kinds of ensembles--from Baroque trio sonatas to cello quartets to new music ensembles. As a solo cellist, she specializes in 20th century solo works, but she is more than happy to get down with some Bach as well!

Videos

Ensemble profiles

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  The Cleveland Cello Quartet

  • Instrument: Cello Ensemble
  • Location: Cleveland

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Past groupmuses (3)