FESTIVAL DATES:
Rehearsal in Paris, Saturday, June 29, 2019
"...Mr. Mesa's playing had a musical intensity that was commanding in every detail."
— New York Concert Review
"...Mesa's youth was essentially irrelevant. A listener with closed eyes would have been hard pressed to distinguish the 26-year-old's shapely, expressive performance with that of another gifted artist two or three times his age. Little wonder Mesa is already something of a seasoned professional..."
- The Plain Dealer
THOMAS MESA, cellist
Thomas Mesa, Cuban-American cellist, is quickly establishing himself as one of the most charismatic and versatile performers of his generation with a wide variety of solo engagements across the United States. Thomas is a Winner of the Astral Artists Auditions (2017), the Sphinx Competition (2016), Thaviu Competition for String Performance (2013), and the Alhambra Orchestra Concerto Competition (2006). Concerto engagements for this season and future seasons include The Cleveland Orchestra, The LA Philharmonic at The Hollywood Bowl, Erie Chamber Orchestra, Firelands Symphony, and Elgin Symphony Orchestra. Recent recital engagements, past and present, include the Mainly Mozart Festival, Nantucket Musical Arts Society, Bargemusic, Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series, Columbia University, Carnegie Hall, The Supreme Court of The United States, The Heifetz Institute, Meadowmount School of Music, Strad for Lunch Series in NYC, International Beethoven Project, Perlman Music Program Alumni Recital as well as universities across the United States.
As an enthusiastic interpreter of music for choir and cello, Thomas was one of the featured instrumentalists on The Crossing Choir’s album called “Bonhoeffer” that was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2017. Led by Donald Nally, this multiple award-winning ensemble has invited Thomas as the featured soloist at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Longwood Gardens, The Winter Garden (broadcast on WNYC) and the Theological Seminary in New York City. Additionally, Thomas and The Crossing Choir collaborated on the American Premiere of “Astralis” (Choir and Solo Cello) composed by Wolfgang Rihm, one of the most important composers of this generation.
As a chamber musician, Thomas has toured with Itzhak Perlman both nationally and internationally and is a member of St. Petersburg Piano Quartet who are in high demand for the most important series in America. The quartet has played sold out concerts at Barge Music, Doheny Mansion, Kohl Mansion, Music Mountain, and Flagler Museum in Palm Beach. In other settings, he has collaborated with world-class artists such as Roger Tapping, Paul Katz, Andres Diaz, and Joseph Silverstein.