Ronald Thomas (born 1954) is an American

cellist The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

known for his work as a soloist and chamber musician. Thomas has made guest appearances with some of the world's finest orchestras including the

Philadelphia Orchestra The Philadelphia Orchestra is an American symphony orchestra, based in Philadelphia. One of the " Big Five" American orchestras, the orchestra is based at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, where it performs its subscription concerts, n ...

, the

Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra The St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1880 by Joseph Otten as the St. Louis Choral Society, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra is the second-oldest professional symphony o ...

, the

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Baltimore SO has its principal residence at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, where it performs more than 130 concerts a year. In 2005, ...

, the

Seattle Symphony Orchestra The Seattle Symphony is an American orchestra based in Seattle, Washington. Since 1998, the orchestra is resident at Benaroya Hall. The orchestra also serves as the accompanying orchestra for the Seattle Opera. History Beginnings The orchest ...

, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, the

Handel and Haydn Society The Handel and Haydn Society is an American chorus and period instrument orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. Known colloquially as 'H+H', the organization has been in continual performance since its founding in 1815, the longest serving suc ...

, the Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston, and the Blossom Festival Orchestra among others. He has played recitals in nearly every state including performances in the cities of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Thomas has also performed throughout

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

and

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

Biography

Thomas first studied cello with Mary Canberg before attending the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

and the

Curtis Institute The Curtis Institute of Music is a private conservatory in Philadelphia. It offers a performance diploma, a Bachelor of Music, Master of Music in opera, and a Professional Studies Certificate in opera. All students attend on a full scholarshi ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

where his principal teachers were

Lorne Munroe Lorne Munroe (November 24, 1924 – May 4, 2020) was an American cellist.Gibson, Ronald and Winters, Kenneth"Munroe, Lorne*, ''Encyclopedia of Music in Canada''. Accessed March 12, 2009 He was principal cellist of the Philadelphia Orchestra from ...

and

David Soyer David Soyer (February 24, 1923February 25, 2010) was an American cellist. He was born in Philadelphia and began playing the piano at the age of nine. At 11, he started the cello. One of his first teachers was Diran Alexanian. Later on he stud ...

. He first drew recognition when he won the Young Concert Artists International Auditions in 1974 at the age of nineteen. Since then he has appeared as a soloist with major orchestras both in the United States and internationally. Ronald Thomas is currently the Principal Cellist of the St. Paul Chamber orchestra, a position he has held since 2005. Thomas is the former co-founder and artistic director of the Boston Chamber Music Society, where he spent 26 years performing and directing until 2009. He has also appeared with the

Seattle Chamber Music Society The Seattle Chamber Music Society (SCMS) is a chamber music festival located in Seattle, Washington that is dedicated to the performance and promotion of chamber music. Established in 1982, the presenting organization is currently in its 43rd Anni ...

and the

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center (CMS) is an American organization dedicated to the performance and promotion of chamber music in New York City and around the world. It is the largest organization of its kind in the country for chamber m ...

both at

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and Philanthropy, philanthropist whose donations assis ...

and on tour. Other chamber music appearances include the La Musica, Music@Menlo, Sarasota Music Festival,

Music from Angel Fire Music from Angel Fire, (MFAF) is the first chamber music festival in New Mexico designed to serve the artistic needs of rural northern New Mexico communities. This touring summer chamber music festival currently produces 15 outstanding concerts in ...

, Music in the Mountains, Portland Chamber Music Festival,

Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival The Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival is a six-week-long summer Festival of chamber music held annually in July and August and located in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was founded in 1972 and presented its first series of concerts in 1973. Well-known mu ...

, Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival, Festival dei Due Mondi, Blossom Music Festival,

Chamber Music Northwest Chamber Music Northwest (CMNW) is an American non-profit organization in Portland, Oregon, dedicated to the performance and promotion of chamber music. In addition to its annual Summer Festival, the organization also presents individual chamber ...

, Sarasota Music Festival, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, the Dubrovnik Festival,

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...

, Amsterdam Festival, and others.Carter Festival Invited Scholars
/ref> Thomas is the artistic director of Chestnut Hill Concerts of Madison, CT and was an original member of the Players in Residence committee and the Board of Overseers at

Bargemusic Bargemusic, formally known as ''Bargemusic, Ltd.'' is a classical music venue and cultural icon in Brooklyn. Founded in 1977, until 2025 it was housed in a converted coffee barge moored at Fulton Ferry Landing on the East River near the Brooklyn ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Thomas is also a former member of

Boston Musica Viva Boston Musica Viva is a Boston, Massachusetts-based music ensemble founded by its music director, Richard Pittman, in 1969 and dedicated to contemporary music. Composers and compositions In its 44-year history, Boston Musica Viva has performed mo ...

and the Aeolian Chamber Players. While a member of these two groups, Thomas premiered countless new works, including those by

Gunther Schuller Gunther Alexander Schuller (November 22, 1925June 21, 2015) was an American composer, conductor, horn player, author, historian, educator, publisher, and jazz musician. Biography and works Early years Schuller was born in Queens, New York City ...

Michael Colgrass Michael Charles Colgrass (April 22, 1932 – July 2, 2019) was an American and Canadian musician, composer, and educator. He was an associate composer of the Canadian Music Centre. Early life and education Colgrass was born in Brookfield, I ...

, Ellen Taaffe Zwilich,

Donald Erb Donald Erb (January 17, 1927 – August 12, 2008) was an American composer best known for large orchestral works such as Concerto for Brass and Orchestra and ''Ritual Observances''. Early years Erb was born in Youngstown, Ohio, graduate ...

William Bolcom William Elden Bolcom (born May 26, 1938) is an American composer and pianist. He has received the Pulitzer Prize, the National Medal of Arts, a Grammy Award, the Detroit Music Award and was named 2007 Composer of the Year by Musical America. He ...

, and William Thomas McKinley. Thomas is a former member of the faculties at M.I.T.,

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

, the

Boston Conservatory Boston Conservatory at Berklee (formerly The Boston Conservatory) is a private performing arts conservatory in Boston, Massachusetts. It grants undergraduate and graduate degrees in dance, music, and theater. Boston Conservatory was founded o ...

and the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore where he spent nine years before resigning in 1997 in order to spend more time with his then new daughter, Caitlin, and the cello. Thomas is married to violist Cynthia Phelps and they live just outside New York City in Leonia, N.J., while Mr. Thomas maintains a secondary residence in St. Paul, MN. They have three daughters: Lili (by Thomas' marriage to Mihae Lee), Christina (by Phelps' marriage to baritone David Malis), and Caitlin.OFFSTAGE WITH: Cynthia Phelps; Playing the Tune and Calling It, Too - New York Times
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Ronald American classical cellists Living people 1954 births