Strasbourg-born cellist Blaise Déjardin was appointed principal cello of the Boston Symphony Orchestra by BSO Music Director Andris Nelsons in spring 2018, having joined the BSO’s cello section in 2008. Andris Nelsons declared after his successful audition: “Blaise is an absolute complete musician with an exquisite breadth of tone, beautiful musical phrasing, and inspired creativity and imagination (…) only matched by his supreme dedication to conveying the true spirit of the music.”
Mr. Déjardin has performed as soloist with orchestra around the world (Christchurch Symphony Orchestra, Boston Pops, Kuopio Symphony Orchestra, Longwood Symphony Orchestra, Cape Ann Symphony, Melrose Symphony Orchestra). Recent solo performances featured concertos by Dvorak, Saint-Saens, Brahms and Shostakovich.
A dedicated chamber musician, he spent two summers at Ravinia’s Steans Institute for Young Artists and is since 2018 a member of the Boston Symphony Chamber Players.
Previously, Déjardin was a member of the European Union Youth Orchestra and the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester. He was a founding member of the Boston-based string orchestra A Far Cry, and in 2010 he founded the acclaimed Boston Cello Quartet with three BSO colleagues. He has arranged numerous pieces for cello ensembles, earning four ASCAP Plus Awards and receiving commissions from Yo-Yo Ma, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and A Far Cry. In 2013 he launched Opus Cello, his online sheet music publishing company. He has served as artistic director of the Boston Cello Society since its creation in 2015.
Mr. Déjardin made his debut with orchestra at age fourteen performing Haydn’s C major concerto at the Corum in Montpellier, France. Among his numerous awards and honors, he was awarded first prize at the Maurice Gendron International Cello Competition and was also the youngest prizewinner at the 6th Adam International Cello Competition in New Zealand. In 2007 he made his Paris recital debut at Le Petit Palais as a laureate of the program Declic supporting emerging young soloists in France. One year later, he gave the U.S. premiere of French composer Edith Canat de Chizy’s Formes du vent for solo cello.
In 2019 Mr. Déjardin released the album “MOZART New Cello Duos” with cellist Kee-Hyun Kim, featuring his own transcriptions. He also appears on both Boston Cello Quartet albums “Pictures” (2013) and “The Latin Project” (2016). His first album as principal cello of the BSO, “Adès conducts Adès”, was released by Deutsche Gramophone in January 2020.
He holds a first prize in Cello with highest honors from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique of Paris, as well as a master of music diploma and a graduate diploma from the New England Conservatory in Boston. His main teachers were Philippe Muller, Laurence Lesser, and Bernard Greenhouse. He has taught privately and at the New England Conservatory and Tanglewood Music Center.