Daniel Thorell (b.1997) is one of the young Swedish cellists who has distinguished
himself the most in his generation.
Alongside a remarkable musical versatility, he has been recognized for his technically
dazzling and colorful cello playing and for his soulful and thoughtful interpretations.
Daniel made his soloist debut already at the age of 11 in Saint-Saën's Cello Concerto
No. 1, first movement, together with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and two
years later he was a soloist with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at the Polar Prize
award ceremony in Stockholm Concert Hall in honor of Yo Yo Ma.
After that, over the years he has been a soloist with the Gothenburg Symphony, the
Philharmonic Orchestra Plauen Zwickau, the Croatian Radio and TV Orchestra in Zagreb
among others, in Tchaikovsky's Rococo Variations and in cello concertos by Dvorák,
Schumann, Tarrodi, Saint-Saëns and Elgar.
Daniel has won 1st prize in no less than 13 national and international soloist
competitions such as the Polar Star Prize, Premio Rovere d'oro, Öresunds Solist,
American Protégé International Piano and Strings Competition with winner's concert in
Carnegie Hall, and more.
Daniel is also a four-time first prize winner in the Stockholm International Music
Competition.
In addition to that, he has been a finalist and prize winner in major prestigious cello
competitions such as the International Cello Competition Markneukirchen, Germany
and the Antonio Janigro International Cello Competition in Zagreb, Croatia.
Daniel was also a finalist in the Swedish Soloist Prize 2022, where he performed an
acclaimed interpretation of Dmitri Shostakovich's Cello Concerto No. 1 together with
the Gothenburg Symphony.
He has been the recipient of SWEA International's Sigrid Paskell Scholarship in the
Performing Arts, several of the Royal Academy of Music's most significant scholarships,
the Saltö Foundation's Järnåker scholarship, among many others. Daniel has also
received the John Andersson i Anderslöv large music scholarship twice.
In the 2019–2020 season, he was also one of a few selected laureates from around the
world for the Gautier Capuçon´s Classe d´excellence de violoncelle at the Fondation
Louis Vuitton in Paris.
Daniel obtained his bachelor’s degree in 2019 at the Royal Academy of Music Edsberg
Castle where he studied with Jakob Koranyi and Professor Torleif Thedéen and
completed his studies for Soloist Diploma in 2022 at the Norwegian Academy of Music
for Professor Thedéen.
Daniel currently runs an extensive freelance business and is frequently hired as a soloist
and chamber musician for festivals and other concert contexts around Europe.
Daniel can sometimes also be seen as a guest solo cellist/principal in symphony and
chamber orchestras both in Sweden and abroad.
Since 2019, he is a member of the award-winning young string quartet Opus13.
Photo: Kristin Aafløy Opdan