Steven Isserlis is a British cellist and author of popular books for children about classical music. He was born in London on 19 December 1958 into a Jewish musical family of Russian origin. His grandfather, pianist and teacher Julius Isserlis, and his father, pianist George Isserlis, were musicians; his sisters Rachel and Annette are violinists.
Isserlis studied at the Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio with Richard Kapuscinski. His style was influenced by Daniil Shafran.
His repertoire includes European classical music, particularly works by Romantic composers such as Schumann, Beethoven, Brahms and Dvořák. In 2007, he recorded Bach’s cello suites and received a Gramophone Award. He has performed with violist Tabea Zimmermann, violinist Joshua Bell and conductor Teodor Currentzis.
His honors include the Order of the British Empire (1998), the Robert Schumann Prize (2000) and the Gold Medal of the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Armenia (2018). He was inducted into Gramophone magazine’s Hall of Fame, and the British press has described him as one of the world’s leading cellists. A book listed among his works is All Sorts of Curiosities About Bach and Beethoven (2007).
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