Ella van Poucke

Born in Amsterdam in 1994, she is one of the leading cellists of her generation. Praised for her musical integrity, flawless instrumental abilities as well as her performing presence and intensity, the 28 year old Dutch cellist belongs to the top rank of today’s generation of cellists. She is the winner of the prestigious Premio Chigiana 2017, the first prize winner of the International Isang Yun cello competition 2015, Grachtenfestival Prize, the Leopoldinum Award 2015, Prix Nicolas Firmenich 2013, Elisabeth Everts Award 2014, Prix Academie Maurice Ravel 2012, Dutch Musician of the Year 2012, first prize winner of the 2008 Princess Christina Competition and recipient of the special prize in “recognition of an outstanding performance at the Grand Prix Emanuel Feuermann 2014.
After making her debut at the Concertgebouw at the age of 10 she has been performing in all the major halls of the Netherlands, in many top halls in Europe and in the U.S and Asia.
As a soloist Ella has performed with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, HR-Sinfonie Orchester, Brussels Philharmonic, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Rotterdam Philharmonic Strings, Württembergisches Kammerorchester Heilbronn, Orchestre della Toscana, Noord Nederlands Orkest, Havana Youth Orchestra, Varsovia Chamber Orchestra, Symfonie Orchestra of Vlaanderen Polish Chamber Orchestra, Leopoldinum Chamber Orchestra, Kremerata Baltica, Hamburger Camerata, Tongyeong Festival Orchestra and collaborated with artists as Michael Sanderling and Christoph Eschenbach among others.
In November 2012 she premiered a new cello concerto, which was written for her by the Finnish composer Uljas Pulkkis during the International Cello Biennale in Amsterdam. In September 2013 she premiered the same work in Germany at the Kronberg Festival, with members of the HR-Sinfonie Orchester Frankfurt. Ella regularly appears on Dutch Radio and Television and has performed for ARTE TV in Germany and France. She appeared in Germany’s “Stars von Morgen” hosted by Rolando Villazon.
As a passionate chamber musician Ella has performed with Andras Schiff, Gary Hoffman, Nobuko Imai, Tabea Zimmermann, Christian Tetzlaff, Viviane Hagner, Gidon Kremer, Colin Carr, Pavel Vernikov, Andreas Reiner, Vilde Frang, Simone Lamsma, Christiaan Bor, Philippe Graffin, Prazak quartet, Schumann quartett among many others. Since many years she regularly performs in recital with pianist Jean-Claude vanden Eynden and with her brother Nicolas van Poucke.
She has been guest in numerous international festivals such as Festspiele Mecklenburg Vorpommern, West Cork Chamber Music Festival, Music@Menlo, Krzyzowa Music, Chigiana International Festival, Kaposfest Hungary, Internationaal Kamermuziek Festival Utrecht, Grachten Festival Amsterdam, Kronberg Festival, Cello Biennale Amsterdam and was invited to participate in Verbier Festival Academy in 2009, 2013 and 2014.
As a Dutch ‘Rising Star’ Ella was invited to give two Carte Blanche concerts in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam in 2013-14. In the summer of 2017 she was Artist in Residence with the National Youth Orchestra of the Netherlands and in August 2018 Ella was Artist in Residence of the Grachtenfestival in Amsterdam. In 2019 Ella performed the complete works for cello and piano by Beethoven in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam together with her brother Nicolas among other venues. In 2018 she toured with all the Bach suites.
This year she is Artist in Residence at the Avrotros Vrijdagconcert where she will perform several times with the Radio Filharmonisch orkest and with her musical friends and inspirations including Gary Hoffman.
Born into a family of musicians, Ella began playing the cello at the age of six. Entered the Royal Conservatory of The Hague at the age of 10 and later continued her studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam with Godfried Hoogeveen. She has taken masterclasses and worked with Andras Schiff, Miklos Perenyi, Daniel Barenboim, Christoph Eschenbach, Steven Isserlis, Anner Bijlsma, Bernard Greenhouse, Mischa Maisky, the Emerson Quartet among others.
From 2009-2016 Ella studied with professor Frans Helmerson at the Kronberg Academy Masters in Germany. From 2016-2019 she was an Artist in Residence at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Brussels, where she studied with Gary Hoffman. Ella plays on a 1620 Maggini cello, kindly lend to her by an anonymus benefactor.