Why do cellists have the urge to play together? 

I grew up surrounded by cellos and cellists. My parents are both professional cellists and cello teachers, and there were always groups of cellists around me. I suppose it seems obvious that I chose the cello, but my true reason for playing the cello was probably this sense of community I always felt around cellists.

There was the love and excitement my parents shared as "Duo Cellissimo" in my early years, where they regularly played concerts that…

It has been so many long months since March 2020, when (at least in Germany) it seemed like the world halted. The day after the first “lockdown” was imposed in Germany, I met with Claudia Meier for a photoshoot, outside and keeping 1,5 meters of separation between us, both of us unsure of how the next few weeks (we thought, naively) would pan out. We discussed what we would be canceling or missing: my wife and I had been planning to visit my grandmother for her 85th birthday in the USA in April – no chance…