Informations
Facts
Born in Düsseldorf, Germany
Member since 01.04.1989
Biography
Christoph Igelbrink was already playing the piano at the age of three, and began learning the cello when he was eleven - in order to complete a family string quartet. Inspired by rapid successes in the »Jugend musiziert« competitions, by the fun he had playing in diverse youth orchestras and by reading biographies of great cellists, he soon realized he wanted to become a professional cellist. At 16, he entered Düsseldorf’s Robert Schumann Hochschule as a pupil of Wolfgang Mehlhorn, later studying at the Hamburg Musikhochschule and attending master classes with Antonio Janigro and Paul Tortelier. After completing his studies, he was engagedby the Hamburg Philharmonic (Philharmonische Staatsorchester) in 1986.
Since 1989 he has been a member of not only the Berliner Philharmoniker but also of the 12 Cellists, and he plays in the Athenaeum Quartet, the Philharmonic Piano Trio of Berlin and the Philharmonic Octet. His free time is devoted to his wife and three daughters, to the house and garden, and to cycling. A tense football match can often distract him from such domestic hobbies as reading or playing the piano.
Awards
Winner of several prizes at national and international competitions
Ensembles of the Berliner Philharmoniker
The 12 Cellists of the Berliner Philharmoniker
Philharmonic Octett
Berlin Philharmonic Virtuosi
Brahms Ensemble Berlin
