About

American violist Stephen Upshaw regularly appears in festivals around the world including the BBC Proms, Aldeburgh, Lucerne, Huddersfield, Aix-en-Provence, Wien Modern and Glastonbury, where he recently collaborated with Max Richter and Tilda Swinton. Much in demand as a chamber musician, he is a member of the award-winning Solem Quartet – praised for their '“immaculate precision and spirit” (The Strad) and recognized as one of the most innovative and adventurous quartets of its generation. He has also shared the stage with artists such as Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Tai Murray, the JACK Quartet, Gary Hoffman, Jess Gillam, Philippe Graffin, Jennifer Stumm and Garth Knox. Recent engagements have taken him to Boston’s Jordan Hall, London’s Barbican and Wigmore Halls, Tokyo Opera City, Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall and Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw.

A noted interpreter of contemporary music, Stephen is also a member of London’s Riot Ensemble - winners of the innaugural Ernst von Siemens Foundation Ensemble Prize and cited by the Guardian as “the supergroup of top soloists playing new music.” He has worked closely with many of today’s leading composers, including Chaya Czernowin, John Adams, Thomas Adès, George Benjamin and Helmut Lachenmann. Expanding the repertoire of the viola through the commissioning of new music has always been a feature of Stephen’s work. He has taken part in over 300 world premieres including chamber music of Georg Haas, Sally Beamish (alongside the composer), Ayanna Witter-Johnson, Edmund Finnis and solo works of Mark Simpson, Simon Holt, Oliver Leith, Michael Finnissy and Errollyn Wallen.

Recent solo appearances include: Feldman’s complete “The Viola in My Life” at Cafe Oto and “Rothko Chapel” with the New London Chamber Choir, Jonathan Harvey’s Jubilus and Benjamin Graves’ concerto “Four Façades” with the Riot Ensemble, and recitals in the Time of Music (Finland), Brighton and Little Missenden Festivals, Kettle’s Yard and the National Gallery.

Stephen has also toured regularly to the USA, Europe and Asia with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and its music director, Joshua Bell and works with the Chineke! Orchestra as principal viola and as a member of the chamber players.

Additionally, Stephen has a strong interest in synthesizing music with other fields and has helped realize collaborative projects with the Boston Architectural College, Transport Theatre Company, Rambert Dance Company and Parasol Unit Art Space. He was also the artistic director of “Sounding Motion” – a company exploring the relationship between live contemporary chamber music and dance.

A native of Atlanta, Stephen studied with Dr. Marilyn Seelman before earning a BMus (Hons) from the New England Conservatory in Boston with Carol Rodland and Martha Strongin-Katz. Stephen completed his Postgraduate studies in the class of David Takeno at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama where he was elected a Junior Fellow and won a Guildhall Scholarship. Chamber Music mentors include Paul Katz, Ferenc Rados, Alasdair Tait and members of the Takacs, Belcea, Endellion, and Arditti Quartets.

In 2016 Stephen was awarded a prestigious soloist Fellowship from Trinity Laban.

Stephen serves on the faculty at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Junior Department, Switzerland’s Lucerne Festival Academy (where he also co-curates the annual ‘Festival Forward’) and has been invited to adjudicate past editions of the Royal Philharmonic Society Awards and the Royal Overseas League Competition.

 He plays a fine 1715 Daniel Parker viola currently made available to him by the Stradivari Trust.