Ella van Poucke hehas established itself as one of the leading cellists of her generation.
Praised for her musical integrity, flawless instrumental skills, présense With her passion and intensity as a performing artist, the Dutch cellist is one of the absolute top of the current generation of cellists.
As a soloist Ella performed with among others the HR-Sinfonie Orchester, Brussels Philharmonic, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Phion, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, Kremerata Baltica, WüWürttemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn, Orchestra Della Toscana, North Netherlands Orchestra, Havana Youth Orchestra, Varsovia Chamber Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra of Flanders, Polish Chamber Orchestra, Leopoldinum Chamber Orchestra, Junge Sinfonie Berlin, Hamburger Camerata, Tongyeong Festival Orchestra, she collaborated with, among others, Christoph Eschenbach, Michael Sanderling, Karina Cannelakis, and others.
She is the winner of the prestigious Premio Chigiana 2017, first prize at the International Isang Yun Cello Competition 2015, the Grachtenfestival Prize, the Leopoldinum Award 2015, the Prix Nicolas Firmenich 2013, the Elisabeth Everts Award 2014, the Prix Academie Maurice Ravel 2012, the Dutch Musician of the Year 2012, and received the special prize in “recognition of an outstanding performance” at the Grand Prix Emanuel Feuermann 2014.
Ella regularly appears on Dutch radio and television and acted for ARTE TV in Germany and France. She appeared on Germany's “Stars von Morgen,” hosted by Rolando Villazon.
As a passionate chamber musiciansicus Ella plays with greats such as Andras Schiff, Gary Hoffman, Nobuko Imai, Tabea Zimmermann, Christian Tetzlaff, Viviane Hagner, Gidon Kremer, Pavel Vernikov, Andreas Reiner, Vilde Frang, Simone Lamsma, Philippe Graffin, the Prazak Quartet, the Schumann Quartet, and many others. She has been giving recitals for many years with pianists such as Jean-Claude vanden Eynden, Severin von Eckardstein, Ben Kim, and her brother Nicolas van Poucke.
Ella is a welcome guest at numerous international festivals such as Festspiele Mecklenburg Vorpommern, West Cork Chamber Music Festival, Music@Menlo, Krzyzowa Music, Chigiana International Festival, Schleswig Holstein Festival, Kaposfest Hungary, International Chamber Music Festival Utrecht, Amsterdam Canal Festival, Kronberg Festival and Amsterdam Cello Biennale.
As a Dutch Rising Star, Ella was invited to perform two Carte Blanche concerts at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam in 2013-14. In the summer of 2017, she was Artist in Residence with the Netherlands National Youth Orchestra, and in August 2018, Ella was Artist in Residence at the Grachtenfestival in Amsterdam. In the 2022-23 season, Ella Artist in Residence at the “Vrijdag van Vredenburg” in Utrecht, where she performed several times as a soloist. performed with the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and in chamber music executed with her friends and sources of inspiration, including Gary Hoffman.
In addition to her busy concert schedule, Ella is a dedicated teacher. In 2022, she was appointed cello professor at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam.
Coming from a musical family began Ella playing the cello at the age of six. At the age of ten, she was admitted to the Royal Conservatory in The Hague and later continued her studies at the Conservatory of Amsterdam with Godfried Hoogeveen. From 2009 to 2016, Ella studied with Frans Helmerson at the Kronberg Academy Masters in Germany. From 2016 to 2019, she was Artist in Residence at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Brussels, where she studied with Gary Hoffman.
Ella plays a Giovanni Paolo Maggini cello from 1620, on loan from an anonymous donor.