Biography
John Michel, in his twenty-seventh year as cello professor at Central Washington University, enjoys his eclectic career as a soloist, chamber musician and teacher.
In addition to regular solo recitals, he has performed the Shostakovich #1, Dvorak, Herbert, Don Quixote, Elgar, Haydn D & C, Tchaikovsky Rococo, Maria Newman, Saint Saëns, Vivaldi E minor, Brahms Double and Beethoven Triple Concertos with various orchestras. More recent collaborations were with Lawrence Golan and the Yakima Symphony, David Waltman and the Rainier Symphony, R. Joseph Scott and the Sammamish Symphony, Ryan Heller and the Southwest Washington Orchestra, Nikolas Caoile and the CWU Symphony, Paul-Elliot Cobbs and the Everett Symphony.
In double series concerts, Mr. Michel has performed all of the six Bach Cello Suites from memory, and regularly appears in the Seattle Bach Suite Marathon.
In 2001, he was one of seven guest artists featured at the First Kobe International Cello Festival in Japan. In addition to a solo recital and masterclass, he performed in grand cello choir concert with 750 other cellists from around the world. In 2015, he returned with four of his students to perform in the 1000 Cellists Concert in Sendai, Japan.
At the World Cello Congress III, he premiered the new Solo Cello Sonata “Othmar” by composer Maria Newman. He has published recordings onto CD and for digital distribution including the Dvorak Cello Concerto, Shostakovich Cello Concert #1, Bach Suites G & C, Maria Newman Solo Sonata and numerous live recordings.
Mr. Michel is a member of the Kairos String Quartet, which holds an endowed professorship as the resident ensemble of Central Washington University. For the past eighteen years the Kairos Quartet has been regularly performing and teaching throughout the Northwest. Their last east coast tour included concerts in Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania and a live appearance on Philadelphia’s WFLN radio. The Kairos Quartet has recorded the "Birthday of the Infanta" CD featuring works of Kairos violinist Maria Newman on the Raptoria Caam label. On occasion he substitutes in the cello section of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra.
He is the founder and former director of the Internet Cello Society, a cyber-community of cellists, that shares the knowledge and joy of cello playing with enthusiasts from around the globe. Currently the 20,000 ICS members represent 84 different countries. He hosts the Central Cello Celebration, a special gathering of cellists in Ellensburg, in Octobers of even-numbered years.
During the summers, Mr. Michel performs and teaches at the Kairos Chamber Music Lyceum and the Tacoma Youth Symphony’s Evergreen Music Festival. He also has been faculty at Marrowstone and Icicle Creek music festivals. He has given masterclasses for the Banff International Orchestra Festivals; Olympia, Icicle Creek and Tacoma Youth Symphony organizations; the Seattle Cello Society and the Interlochen Arts Camp. He founded StringTeaching.com that features videos of fundamental exercises and activities for string instruction. The American String Teacher Association, Washington chapter, na\med him Outstanding College String Teacher in 1996. He serves on the board of the New Directions Cello Association.
His formal training includes Bachelor and Master degrees from the University of Michigan and the New England Conservatory. Bernard Greenhouse of the Beaux Arts Trio, Jeffrey Solow, Stefan Popov, Ned Johnson, John Lenz and Susan Ladley were his main teachers.
He is married to Kairos violinist Carrie Rehkopf, and father of three active boys.
