Shauna Rolston-Shaw

Biography

Award-winning Canadian cellist Shauna Rolston is considered by peers and fans alike to be one of the most compelling and unique musical voices on the stage today. Since receiving a mini cello for her 2nd birthday, Shauna has appeared around the world, performing with such distinguished artists as Krzysztof Penderecki, Sir Andrew Davis, Robert Spano, Marin Alsop, Keith Lockhart, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Hans Graf, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Andrey Boreyko, and Menahem Pressler, as well as undertaking innovative collaborations with Veronica Tennant, Evelyn Hart, and Peggy Baker. She has performed in many of the world’s major concert halls including Wigmore Hall, Concertgebouw, Lincoln Center and Carnegie Hall, and was the featured artist at the 1988 Olympics.

Praised for her blazing technique and her ability to captivate the imagination and touch the heart of each audience member, Shauna continues to astonish and delight with her concerts, recordings, and world premieres. Her passion for the music of our time has led to the commission and creation for her of more than 50 new works for cello, including several concerti by Canada’s leading composers. She has also given the Canadian and North American premieres of works by Gavin Bryars, Mark-Anthony Turnage, Osvaldo Golijov, John Tavener, Einojuhani Rautavaara, and Augusta Read Thomas, among many others.

A recording artist since the age of 16, her most recent CDs include “Dreamscape”, featuring Shauna as soloist with cello orchestra in arrangements of popular classical favourites, and “Icicles of Fire”, featuring the music of Heather Schmidt written for Shauna with the composer at the piano.

The diversity of Shauna’s artistry is reflected in the many honours she has received throughout her professional career including an invitation to join the Governor-General’s State Delegation to Finland and Iceland, her appointments as Ambassador for the Canadian Music Centre and for Sistema Toronto, and most recently, the Oskar Morawetz Award for Excellence in Music Performance.

In addition to her busy concert and recording career, Shauna is a devoted educator much in demand as a guest master class artist. Currently Professor of Cello at the University of Toronto, Shauna earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History from Yale University and a Master of Music degree from the Yale School of Music where she studied with the distinguished cellist and pedagogue, Aldo Parisot.