Philippe Muller

Philippe Muller (born 20 April 1946, in Mulhouse) is a French cellist.

Biography Philippe Muller (born 20 April 1946, in Mulhouse) is a French cellist and pedagogue.

His first contact with the cello was under the guidance of Dominique Prete, professor at the National School of Music and soloist with the philharmonic orchestra of his native city.

His parents, although passionate about music, did not initially think of making him a professional musician, but they did not oppose his desire to attend the Paris Conservatoire.

With André Navarra, his mentor, Philippe Muller realized the importance of methodical and well-organized work. The years he spends in his class prepare the basis for his own teaching. Guy Fallot and Paul Tortelier will complete his training.

Philippe Muller has devoted an important part of his career to chamber music. For a long time principal cello of the Versailles Chamber Orchestra, he founded in 1970 a trio with Jean-Jacques Kantorow and Jacques Rouvier, which rapidly acquired great national and international renown. In 1976, he joined the Ensemble Intercontemporain where he became familiar with the music of his time. He stayed there for seven years.

In 1979 he was appointed Professor of cello at the most prestigious Conservatoire de Paris, succeeding his teacher André Navarra. A leading figure of the French cello school, he was passionate about teaching and for thirty-five years trained a large number of students, many of whom became renowned soloists. In 2014, reaching retirement age, he emigrated to the United States and accepted a teaching position at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City.

Aside from his teaching duties, he is also frequently invited to serve as a jury member for the most prestigious international cello competitions, f.e. Concours de violoncelle Rostropovitch, International Paulo Cello Competition, Grand Prix Emanuel Feuermann, Pablo Casals International Cello Competition, Isang Yun Competition, George Enescu International Competition, Beijing International Music Competition. In order to maintain a balance between classes and concerts, he performs as a soloist as often as possible and collaborates with numerous ensembles. He is a regular guest in major European, American and Asian cities.

His extensive discography, begun in the seventies, reflects his eclectic tastes and his love of chamber music.

Famous cellists having studied with Philippe Muller

Sophia Bacelar, Emmanuelle Bertrand, Gautier Capuçon, Marc Coppey, Blaise Déjardin, Bruno Delepelaire, Henri Demarquette, Katharina Deserno, Ophélie Gaillard, Anne Gastinel, Alexander Gebert, Christian-Pierre La Marca, Éric & Yan Levionnois, Hee-Young Lim, Dimitri Maslennikov, Edgar Moreau, Kenji Nakagi, Pablo de Naveran, Aurélien Pascal, Jérôme Pernoo, Romain Garioud, Xavier Phillips, Raphaël Pidoux, François Salque, Camille Thomas, Dominique de Williencourt, Sung-Won Yang, William Molina Cestari, Johan van Iersel.

Discography

Vivaldi: Six sonatas for Cello and Harpsichord Op. 14 (with Klaus Preis), Da Camera Magna Mozart: Quartets with flute (with András Adorján, Pina Carmirelli, Philipp Naegele), Sastruphon Ludwig van Beethoven: Serenades (avec Pina Carmirelli, Philipp Naegele), Impromptu Johann Sebastian Bach: The musical Offering (with András Adorján, Johannes Nerokas, Bernd Krakow, Masafumi Hori, Maria Fülöp, Philipp Naegele, Jürgen Wolf), Sastruphon, 1972 Bohuslav Martinu, Maurice Ravel: Duets for violin and cello (with Pina Carmirelli), Da Camera Magna, 1972 Johann Sebastian Bach: The Art of the Fugue (with Pina Carmirelli, Maria Fülöp, Philipp Naegele), Sastruphon, 1973 Bohuslav Martinu: Cello Sonatas (with Ralf Gothoni), Da Camera Magna, 1975 Cello and Organ (with Rolf Schönstedt), Da Camera Magna, 1976 Paganini, Boccherini: Guitare Chamber Music (with Rudolf Wangler, Philipp Naegele, Jean-Claude Bouveresse, Marjan Karuza), Da Camera Song, 1976 The Art of the Cello (with Brigitte Haudebourg, Jacques Rouvier, Henri Wojtkowiak, Paul Tortelier), Arion, 1979 Bohuslav Martinu, Works for Cello 2 (with Ralf Gothoni), Da Camera Magna,1979 Jacques Offenbach : Cello Duets (with Alain Meunier), 1980 Gabriel Fauré, César Franck: Works for Cello and Piano (with Jacques Rouvier), Harmonia Mundi, 1982 Michel Merlet: Chamber Music (with Jean-Jacques Kantorow, Pascal Devoyon), Cybelia, 1983 Guy Ropartz: Sonatas for cello and piano (with Monique Bouvet), Oybella, 1989 Igor Stravinsky: Florence Gould Hall Chamber Players (with Pierre-Henri Xuereb, Jean-Louis Haguenauer, Michel Lethiec, Annick Roussin, Alexis Galperine, Fabrice Pierre, Patrick Gallois), OPES 3D, 1993 Jacques Castérède: Trois paysages d'Automne (with Atelier Musique Ville d'Avray, conductor: Jean-Louis Petit), REM, 1999 Ivo Malec: Arco-I, Motus, 1999 Johan Sebastien Bach: The 6 Suites for cello solo, Passavant Music, 2008 Jean Cras: Chamber Music (with Shikiko Tsuruzono, Akiko Nanashima, Jacques Gauthier), Fontec, 2012

In a trio with Jean-Jacques Kantorow and Jacques Rouvier

Dmitri Shostakovich, Bohuslav Martinu: Twentieth century trios, Da Camera Magna, 1971 Maurice Ravel: Trio for piano, violon, cello / Sonata for violon and cello, Erato, 1975 Johannes Brahms: Trio n°1, Opus 8 in B for piano, violin and cello, Sarastro, 1977 Beethoven: The Archduke Trio Opus 97, Accord, 1978 Johannes Brahms: Trios opus 87 (C major), opus 101 (C minor), Accord, 1979 Hans Pfitzner: Trio in F minor Opus 8 for piano, violin and cello, Da Camera, 1980 Franz Schubert: Trio Opus 99, Forlane, 1982 Franz Schubert: Trout Quintet Opus 114, (with Vladimir Mendelssohn and Duncan Mc.Tier), Forlane, 1982 Debussy, Ravel, Fauré: Trios for piano, violin and cello, Denon, 1993

With the Heidelberg Chamber Orchestra

Antonio Vivaldi: Concertos for cello, Sastruphon George-Philipp Telemann: Triple concerto in B flat major, concert in G major, concert suite in D major, Da Camera Magna, 1974

Within l'Octuor de Paris

Franz Schubert: Octet in F, Opus 166 (with Jean-Pierre Laroque, Guy Deplus, Gabin Lauridon, Daniel Bourgue, Jean-Louis Bonafous, Gérard Klam, Jean Léber), CGD, 1978

Within l'Ensemble Intercontemporain

Maurice Ravel : Chansons madécasses (with Jessye Norman, Alain, Marion, Pierre-Laurent Aimard), 1979 Arnold Schoenberg: The Transfigured Night, Op.4 (with Charles-André Linale, Maryvonne Le Dizès, Jean Sulem, Garth Knox, Pierre Strauch)