"The young cellist is a breathtaking and special musician, who visibly allows himself to be drawn into Shostakovich’s dark worlds. He modulates his sound enormously and can sing and saw, dance and attack, shimmering in the pianos and glowing in the fortes."
Süddeutsche Zeitung (Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra/Jurowski)
Ivan Karizna is a storyteller with an exceptional gift of musical expression, known equally for his poetic interpretations and his powerful stage presence. Described by András Schiff as "one of the best cellists of his generation", he has won numerous awards, including at the Tchaikovsky and Queen Elisabeth Competitions.
In 2024/25 Karizna returns to the Cello Biennale Amsterdam to give three performances, including Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto with Rotterdam Philharmonic and Tarmo Peltokoski. He tours Europe with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine and Dvořák’s Cello Concerto, and performs Weinberg’s Cello Concerto with Aarhus Symphony Orchestra under Dmitry Matvienko. He also joins Liza Ferschtman to play the Brahms Double Concerto with the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra in Bucharest, a piece which he will return to at the Concertgebouw the following season.
Recent highlights include a six-concert tour with Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra and Vladimir Jurowski, performing Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 2, and concerts with Netherlands Philharmonic, Frankfurt Radio Symphony, Belgian National Orchestra and Orchestre symphonique de Montréal, working with conductors including Christoph Eschenbach, Stéphane Denève, Valery Gergiev and Juraj Valčuha.
An avid chamber musician, he performed in the 2023/24 season with colleagues for example in Rotterdam and in Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw. Past chamber collaborations include performances with Gidon Kremer, András Schiff, Renaud Capuçon and Christian Tetzlaff.
Born into a musical family in Minsk, Ivan Karizna’s early training was in the tradition of the Russian school, and at 17 he moved to the Paris Conservatoire, before completing his training at the Kronberg Academy with Frans Helmerson. He plays the 1760 Tassini cello previously owned by Paul Tortelier and on generous loan from a member of the Stretton Society. He is a French citizen, dividing his time between Paris and Amsterdam.