Carnegie Hall

South African cellist Abel Selaocoe has established himself as a leading voice of reimagining classical music. Redefining the parameters of the cello, he moves seamlessly across a plethora of genres and styles, from collaborations with world and jazz musicians, to concertos and solo performances. Selaocoe combines virtuosic performance with improvisation, singing, and body percussion. He is devoted to composing works and curating programs that highlight the links between Western and non-Western musical traditions, broadening the horizons of classical music to reach a more diverse audience. In 2023, he received the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Instrumentalist Award.

Selaocoe thrives in exploratory settings, developing new projects with contemporaries. He enjoys close collaborations with musicians from a medley of genres, including Bernhard Schimpelsberger, Seckou Keita, Manchester Collective, Giovanni Sollima, and Dudù Kouaté. In 2016, Selaocoe formed Chesaba, a trio that specializes in music from the African continent, including many of his own compositions; in 2022, he formed the Bantu Ensemble.

Selaocoe is artistic partner of The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, artist in association with the BBC Singers, and artist in residence at the Kölner Philharmonie. In the 2024–2025 season, he makes his debut at the Verbier Festival with a solo recital and tours internationally with the Bantu Ensemble. He also tours the UK and Europe with Manchester Collective.

Selaocoe continues to perform his solo cello concerto Four Spirits with the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and on a European tour with Aurora Orchestra. The Signum Quartet and The Hermes Experiment also premiere new works by Selaocoe this fall.

Selaocoe completed his international artist diploma at the Royal Northern College of Music. In 2021, he was named an inaugural Power Up music creator in PRS Foundation’s initiative to address racism and racial disparities in music. Later that year, he received an award from the Paul Hamlyn Foundation in recognition of his compositional work.

Selaocoe plays a copy of a circa 1735 Montagnana, made by Robin Aitchison in 2020 with the generous support of the Alan Powell Trust. Selaocoe is an exclusive recording artist with Warner Classics.

The Bantu Ensemble comprises pianist Fred Thomas, bassist Alan Keary, and percussionist Dudù Kouaté. In their first season, the ensemble recorded on Selaocoe’s debut album Hae Ke Kae (Where Is Home) and went on to tour to the Berliner Philharmonie, Kölner Philharmonie, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, and London’s Southbank Centre.

Recent highlights for the group have included debut performances at Philharmonie Luxembourg, Vienna’s Konzerthaus, and Berlin’s Konzerthaus, along with a UK tour to venues such as Manchester’s Band on the Wall and London’s KOKO.

Their 2024–2025 season begins with the group’s first US tour, including a performance at La Jolla Music Society in San Diego.