Jay Campbell, cello

Jay has been recognized around the world for approaching both old and new works with equally probing curiosity and emotional commitment. His performances have been described as “brilliant and insatiably inquisitive”, “electrifying”, and “prodigious” by the New York Times, and “gentle, poignant, and deeply moving” by the Washington Post. A recipient of the prestigious Avery Fisher Career Grant, Jay performed with the New York Philharmonic in 2013 and was a curator for the New York Philharmonic’s 2016 Biennale. He has soloed in major venues around the globe including Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium, Avery Fisher Hall, and Lucerne’s KKL and performed recitals in Carnegie’s Weill Hall, the Kennedy, Mondavi, and Krannert centers. Dedicated to introducing audiences to the music of our time, Jay has worked closely with some of the most creative minds of the 20th/21st centuries including Pierre Boulez, Elliott Carter, Matthias Pintscher, Kaija Saariaho, and countless others from his own generation. His close association with John Zorn has resulted in over a dozen works written for him including The Aristos, a Pulitzer Prize runner up resulting in the release of Hen to Pan (Tzadik), listed in the New York Times Best Recordings of 2015. Jay is the cellist of Junction Trio with violinist Stefan Jackiw and pianist Conrad Tao. He has been a guest at the Marlboro, Chamber Music Northwest, Moab, HeidelbergerFruhling, DITTO, and Lincoln Center festivals. Jay serves on the faculty of the Mannes School of Music, where JACK is Quartet in Residence.