Alex Engelhardt
cello
Hometown: Loveland, CO
Alma maters: Eastman School of Music, Masters in Performance and Literature, 2024–26; University of Colorado Boulder, Bachelors in Cello Performance, 2020–24
Photo credit
Appearances
Franconian Cello Academy, Nüremberg, Germany, 2025; Rencontres Internationales Musicales des Graves, Bourdeaux, France, 2025; Bowdoin International Music Festival, Bowdoin, ME, 2024; Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, Burlington, VT, 2023; Eastman Cello Institute, Rochester, NY, 2022
What is your earliest memory of classical music?
My grandmother used to be an organist at a church close to my house, and I have many memories of her picking me up from preschool and taking me to the church so she can practice. I would wander through the pews looking at old hymn books and scriptures as she would play through Bach chorals and all sorts of sacred music.
Was there a teacher who was particularly impactful/helpful? What made this instructor stand out?
My most recent teacher, Steven Doane, who teaches at the Eastman School of Music, is the teacher whom I have found the most inspiration and impact from. Not only is his warm personality easy to embrace, but his musicality is one of the most sensible that I have come across in my lifetime, which has made learning from him remarkably engaging and exciting. I always seem to walk out of lessons with Mr. Doane having learned a little more than just how to play the cello.
What is the most memorable performance you ever had?
As I was pursuing my master’s at Eastman, I had the privilege of sitting principal chair for an orchestra cycle when Leonard Slatkin conducted us playing Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 11. During the rehearsal process, we also had coachings from Zoya Lebin, who grew up in the Soviet Union and worked directly with Shostakovich. Hearing her life story, her accounts with Shostakovich, and the importance of us playing his music was one of the most inspirational speeches I have ever heard. During the concert, every member of the orchestra poured as much emotion into that single performance than I have ever seen, and I will always remember what we all felt on that stage that day.
What is your proudest achievement as a musician?
My proudest achievement as a musician would have to be playing my first-ever full recital my junior year of my undergrad. Even though I think I have grown and developed a lot as a musician since then, I will never forget the doubts I had in the months leading up to my recital. I thought there was no way I was ever going to be able to play a full hour of incredibly complicated music by myself for a live audience without having a panic attack. Even though I felt like a nervous wreck leading up to it, I managed to surprise myself by the time it was over by giving a performance that I was proud of, and I learned that I can trust myself a lot more than I was allowing myself.
Can you share any memorable onstage mishaps?
When I was in high school, our orchestra played at a festival that some other nearby high school orchestras were playing in, and we walked on stage to find out that there was no percussion equipment set up. Since the piece we were playing needed percussion, and we were told all instruments would be set up before the concert, the percussionists ran across the building to get the equipment we needed. The festival director told us that they were on a tight schedule, and needed to start our concert before the percussionists got back. So as we are in the middle of playing a very slow and delicate piece, they come running in through the front door passing through all the audience members with the clanking wind chimes and cymbals causing a complete and unavoidable distraction. Some of us had to stand up while we were playing the concert to let them into the back so they could set up, and they frantically started playing as if nothing strange had happened at all.