Biography
London-based, New Zealand-Dutch cellist and pianist Lucy Gijsbers graduated in July 2018 with an Artist Diploma from the Royal College of Music, London. As an RCM Scholar, she graduated top of her class under the tutelage of Thomas Carroll. She completed her Bachelor of Music in cello and piano performance with first-class Honors in 2014, and in 2015 completed her Master of Musical Arts at the New Zealand School of Music. There, Lucy studied cello with Inbal Megiddo, and has previously studied with David Chickering and Christopher Salmon, and piano with Jian Liu, Catherine McKay, Judith Clark and Diedre Irons.
Lucy works regularly with professional orchestras including The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, English National Opera, The London Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra, The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, The Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, The New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, The Orchestra of the Swan, The Nordic Symphony Orchestra, amongst others. In 2019-2021 she participated in the London Philharmonic Future Firsts programme. A member of the NZSO National Youth Orchestra for six years, for the 2012-13 season she was selected principal cellist of the orchestra.
One of the highlights of her career was performing Elgar’s Cello Concerto at the age of 17 with the Wellington Youth Orchestra, and that performance was recorded and broadcasted on Concert FM. As concerto soloist she has also performed with the Michael Monaghan Young Musicianʼs Foundation Orchestra and the Tawa Orchestra. In 2018, she was a prizewinner at the Royal College of Music Cello Competition.
She has performed in high-profile venues throughout the UK, United Arab Emirates, Estonia, Italy, Australia and New Zealand, and one of her most recent appearances was at the World Expo in Dubai. Lucy performed in the 2018 Lincolnshire International Chamber Music Festival as a member of the Festival’s resident string quartet, and also the Swansea International Festival, Windsor Festival, Adelaide International Cello Festival and the Canberra International Music Festival. In September 2015 she was invited to attend the Melbourne Cello Festival, where she performed Ligeti’s Solo Cello Sonata in the Rising Stars Concert. Lucy has recorded in Abbey Road Studios.
A keen chamber musician, Lucy was a member of Duo Cecilia with pianist Andrew Atkins. In November 2014 the Duo was in the finals of the Royal Overseas League Chamber Music Competition in New Zealand. The duo was invited to perform in various venues around the North Island and performed Weinberg’s Cello and Piano Sonata No. 2 at the Recovering Forbidden Voices Conference in 2014. Duo Cecilia won first prize in the New Zealand School of Music Duo Competition in 2015. In London, Lucy regularly collaborates with pianist Hannah-Elizabeth Teoh, and their most recent duo recital was at the National Liberal Club in 2021.
During her formative years she participated in masterclasses with Lynn Harrell, Wolfgang Schmidt, Philippe Muller, Natalie Clein, Richard Aaron, Marko Ylonen, Alisa Weilerstein, Narek Hakhnazaryan, Georg Pedersen, Leonard Elschenbroich, Alvin Wong, Howard Penny, Richard Lester, Rowena Calvert, John Myerscough, Andrew Joyce, Shmuel Magen, Michael Klinghoffer, Susan Blake, Euan Murdoch, James Tennant, Michael Haber, the NZ String Quartet, the NZ Trio, the Cavaleri Quartet, Michael Houston, Peter Nagy, Sofya Gulyak and John Chen, amongst others.
Whilst still in high school, she gained DipABRSM cello performance, and DipABRSM and LTCL in piano performance, both with distinction. She received the Hedy King Robinson award twice for excellence in music theory exams, and was been awarded many scholarships whilst being at the Royal College of Music and the New Zealand School of Music, the most recent including the Victoria Graduate Award, Freemasons Lankhuyzen/Whetu-Kairangi Music Award, Barbara Finlayson and Bal-na-Shee scholarships.
Lucy regularly collaborates with both young composers and those more established, such as Jeroen Speak and Edwin Hillier, performing and recording their new works.
She is the founder of London Strings and London Cello Studio.
Publications: The Three Great Soviet Composers and Mstislav Rostropovich – Talent, Music and Politics in the Soviet Union.