Sophie Kauer (born 2001) is a British and German cellist and actress. She made her screen debut in the 2022

Todd Field William Todd Field (born February 24, 1964) is an American filmmaker and actor. He is known for directing '' In the Bedroom'' (2001), '' Little Children'' (2006), and '' Tár'' (2022), which were nominated for a combined fourteen Academy Award ...

film, ''

Tár ''Tár'' is a 2022 psychological drama film written and directed by Todd Field. Cate Blanchett stars as Lydia Tár, a world-renowned conductor, whose life unravels after she is accused of misconduct. The supporting cast includes Nina Hoss, No� ...

'', where she starred alongside

Cate Blanchett Catherine Élise Blanchett ( ; born 14 May 1969) is an Australian actor and producer. Regarded as one of the best performers of her generation, she is recognised for Cate Blanchett on screen and stage, her versatile work across stage and scre ...

Life and career

Kauer was born in London. At the age of 8 she began learning to play the cello; she was accepted 18 months later into the Junior Department of the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is one of the oldest music schools in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the firs ...

, where she studied with Melissa Phelps. She studied at the Academy on a scholarship for seven years and simultaneously attended

Guildford High School Guildford High School is a private day school for girls that was founded in 1888. Approximately 1,000 girls between ages 4 to 18 are attending the school from Guildford and its surrounding towns and villages. The school comprises a junior schoo ...

. In 2019 Kauer was named "Young Musician of the Year" by the

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

Music Festival. Since the autumn of 2020 Kauer has been studying at the

Norwegian Academy of Music The Norwegian Academy of Music (Norwegian: ''Norges musikkhøgskole'', NMH) is a university-level music conservatory located in Oslo, Norway, in the neighbourhood of Majorstuen, Frogner. It is the largest music academy in Norway and offers the ...

with Swedish cellist . Kauer was cast in the role of Olga in the 2022 film ''

''; her previous acting experience had been minimal. According to interviews, she found out about the casting call in a Facebook post in February 2021. A friend had sent it encouraging her to try out. With

COVID-19 lockdowns During the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of Non-pharmaceutical intervention (epidemiology), non-pharmaceutical interventions, particularly lockdowns (encompassing stay-at-home orders, curfews, quarantines, and similar socie ...

canceling in-person lessons and concerts, as well as restricting people from leaving their homes, Kauer decided to audition because she thought it was "really cool". She also said she had no expectations of success and believed ''Tár'' would be an "amazing way to bring classical music to the attention of a whole new audience". She auditioned via

Zoom Zoom may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Film * ''Zoom'' (2006 film), starring Tim Allen * ''Zoom'' (2015 film), a Canada-Brazil film by Pedro Morelli * ''Zoom'' (2016 Kannada film), a Kannada film * ''Zoom'' (2016 Sinhala film), a Sr ...

, then later received a call asking her to submit a recording of herself playing

Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

Cello Concerto A cello concerto (sometimes called a violoncello concerto) is a concerto for solo cello with orchestra or, very occasionally, smaller groups of instruments. These pieces have been written since the Baroque era if not earlier. However, unlike instru ...

. After a week she was informed by

and one of the film's casting directors that her audition had been successful. Kauer recorded portions of the Elgar Cello Concerto with the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's orchestras, symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's ...

in the soundtrack album for ''Tár''. Despite her role in the film, she said that playing the cello remains her focus. On March 8, 2023, Kauer signed with

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

." On April 25, 2023, the label announced that her performance of the first of

Clara Schumann Clara Josephine Schumann (; ; née Wieck; 13 September 1819 – 20 May 1896) was a German pianist, composer, and piano teacher. Regarded as one of the most distinguished pianists of the Romantic music, Romantic era, she exerted her influence o ...

’s Three Romances, Op. 22, reached number one on the Classical On-Demand Audio Streaming chart, making Kauer "the youngest artist since the chart’s inception to achieve this top position at just 21 years old".

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kauer, Sophie 2001 births British film actresses British cellists German film actresses German cellists Musicians from London People educated at Guildford High School Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Norwegian Academy of Music alumni Living people Deutsche Grammophon artists 21st-century classical musicians 21st-century British musicians 21st-century British women musicians 21st-century German musicians 21st-century German women musicians 21st-century British actresses 21st-century German actresses 21st-century British cellists Actresses from London