Julian Thompson

Cello

Chair sponsored by The Stewart Family, and Julie Steiner AM & Judyth Sachs.

Julian Thompson is one of Australia’s most versatile cellists. Growing up in Canberra, he has toured Australia and the world with the Australian Chamber Orchestra since 2006, regularly performing in the world’s most prestigious concert halls and appearing on the ACO’s ARIA award-winning recordings.

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Julian is in much demand as a recording artist in a variety of genres, with his solo cello performances heard in films including Sherpa, Tanna, and Miracle on Everest, and Sydney Dance Company productions ab [intra] and 2 One Another. Julian recorded the solo cello Yidaki parts on Dr G. Yunupingu’s album Djarimirri, which was the first Indigenous language recording to reach No. 1 on the ARIA charts and won the Best World Music Album and Best Independent Release at the 2018 ARIA Awards. In 1999 Julian won the Best World Music ARIA Award for Fyvie’s Embrace.

1729 Guarneri Cello

Learn about the 1729 Guarneri Cello Julian performs on, kindly donated to the ACO by Peter Weiss AO.

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Julian is a Fulbright Scholar and completed a Master of Music in the USA with Janos Starker and Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi. He also studied at the Australian National University with Lois Simpson and David Pereira and at the Australian National Academy of Music.

Julian performs regularly with the Australian World Orchestra and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and has appeared as soloist with the Canberra and Adelaide symphony orchestras.

Julian plays a 1729 Guarneri cello, kindly donated to the ACO by Peter Weiss AO.