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Cello

Blaise Déjardin

Principal Cello, Boston Symphony Orchestra
Philip R. Allen chair, endowed in perpetuity

Blaise Déjardin headshot with cello

About

Strasbourg-born cellist Blaise Déjardin was appointed principal cello of the Boston Symphony Orchestra by BSO Music Director Andris Nelsons in spring 2018, having joined the BSO’s cello section in 2008. He is the 14th principal cello in the history of the orchestra. In making the appointment, Nelsons praised Déjardin as “an absolute complete musician with an exquisite breadth of tone, beautiful musical phrasing, and inspired creativity and imagination, only matched by his supreme dedication to conveying the true spirit of the music.”

Déjardin made his highly acclaimed concerto debut with the BSO and Nelsons in spring 2022 with Saint-Saëns’ Concerto for Cello No. 1. He has also performed as soloist around the world with such ensembles as the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Kuopio Symphony Orchestra, Boston Pops, Longwood Symphony Orchestra, Cape Ann Symphony, and Melrose Symphony Orchestra. Recent solo performances featured concertos by Dvořák, Brahms, and Shostakovich.

A dedicated chamber musician, he spent two summers at Ravinia's Steans Institute and has been a member of the Boston Symphony Chamber Players since 2018. Previously, Déjardin was a member of the European Union Youth Orchestra and the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester. He was also a founding member of A Far Cry and the Boston Cello Quartet.

Déjardin has arranged numerous pieces for cello ensembles which have garnered him five ASCAP Plus awards and has received commissions from Yo-Yo Ma, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and A Far Cry. In 2013 he launched Opus Cello, his online sheet music publishing company. He has served as artistic director of the Boston Cello Society since its creation in 2015.

Déjardin made his solo debut with orchestra at age 14 performing Haydn’s Concerto for Cello No. 1 in C Major at the Corum in Montpellier, France. Among his numerous awards and honors, he was awarded first prize at the Maurice Gendron International Cello Competition and was also the youngest prizewinner at the Sixth Adam International Cello Competition in New Zealand. In 2007 he made his Paris recital debut at Le Petit Palais as a graduate of the Déclic program, which supports emerging young soloists in France.

In 2019 Déjardin released the album Mozart: New Cello Duos with cellist Kee-Hyun Kim, featuring his own transcriptions. He also appears on both Boston Cello Quartet albums Pictures and The Latin Project. His first album as principal cello of the BSO, Adès Conducts Adès was released by Deutsche Gramophone in 2020.

Déjardin holds a degree in cello with highest honors from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique of Paris, as well as a Master of Music and a graduate diploma from New England Conservatory in Boston. His main teachers were Philippe Muller, Laurence Lesser, and Bernard Greenhouse. He serves on the cello faculty of the New England Conservatory and is regularly invited to give masterclasses in Europe, China, and North America. His instructional book Audition Day was published by Opus Cello in 2022.

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