Alan, a cellist from Cleveland, has been a big Alban Gerhardt fan for a long time, so he was happy to assemble a repertoire report for his favourite cellist.

Alban must be about the busiest cellist on the planet- certainly nobody I know carries more repertoire or is more fearless in terms of his scheduling. Just look at what he was up to in 2 weeks in April this year:

April 30, 2010 at 8:00 PM
Berlin — Philharmonie
Benefitconcert with the RSB and Marek Janowski
April 25, 2010 at 5:00 PM
Esslingen — Kaisersaal im Amtsgericht
Solorecital (Bach, Ligeti, Kodaly) beim Jungen Europäischen Musikfestival Esslingen 2010
April 24, 2010 at 8:00 PM
Mainz — Stadttheater
Schumann and Volkmann concertos with the Mainz State Orchestra under Catherine Rückwardt.
April 23, 2010 at 8:00 PM
Mainz — Stadttheater
Schumann and Volkmann concertos with the Mainz State Orchestra under Catherine Rückwardt

April 22, 2010 at 8:00 PM
Essen — Philharmonie
Dvorak Concerto with the Orchestre National de France under Kurt Masur
April 17, 2010 at 7:30 PM
Markkleeberg — Lindensaal
Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations with the Westsächsische Sinfonieorchester under Frank Erben
April 16, 2010 at 8:00 PM
Paris — Theatre Champs-Elysees
Amnesty International Gala Concert with Dvorak and the Orchestre Radio France under Adrian Prabava

April 15, 2010 at 8:00 PM
Paris — Théâtre des Champs-Elysées
Dvorak Concerto with the Orchestre National de France under Kurt Masur
April 14, 2010 at 8:00 PM
Liverpool
Don Quixotte with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra under K.Petrenko

That’s 16 days with Dvorak, Don Quixotte, Rococo, Schumann, Volkmann (so glad someone is playing that piece- it’s quite lovely) and Chin concertos (although the Chin looks like a possible archiving mistake- I’m not sure it is possible to do Dvorak in Essen on the 22nd and Chin in Seoul on the 23rd). One wonders when he prepared that solo program with Ligeti, Kodaly and Bach. I think the lesson for young cellists is that having a solo career isn’t just about how well you play, but how much you can withstand- travel, changes in repertoire and performing conditions and separation from family

Cellist Alban Gerhardt

Here’s Alban’s list

  1. Bach Solo Suite 1
  2. Bach Solo Suite 2
  3. Bach Solo Suite 3
  4. Bach Solo Suite 4
  5. Bach Solo Suite 5
  6. Bach Solo Suite 6
  7. Barber Concerto
  8. Brahms Double Concerto with Augustin Hadelich
  9. Britten Suite No.1
  10. Unsuk Chin Concerto
  11. Dutilleux “Tout un monde lointain”
  12. Dvorak Concerto
  13. Elgar Concerto
  14. CD production with Cecile Licad for Hyperion, all Fauré
  15. Haydn C Major
  16. Kodály Solo Sonata
  17. Lalo Concerto
  18. Ligeti – Solo Sonata
  19. Matthias Pintschers “Narcissus”
  20. Prokofievs Sinfonia Concertante
  21. Saint-Saens 1st Concerto
  22. Schumann Concerto
  23. Schumann Concerto in Shostakovich’s Version
  24. Shostakovich 1st Concerto
  25. Shostakovich No.2
  26. Strauss- Romanze fur Cello und Orchestra
  27. Strauss- Don Quixotte
  28. Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations
  29. Volkmann concerto
  30. Walton Concerto with the BBC Wales under David Atherton