Noelle Casella Grand, an American born cellist, has been praised for her “wonderful, rich tone” and her “particularly expressive and finely nuanced playing”. Noelle is a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music in London where she received a Master of Arts and the accompanying LRAM Teaching Diploma with distinction. Prior to her years at the Academy, Noelle studied in New York at Sarah Lawrence College and at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. Equally at home on the concert platform as in the classroom, Noelle enjoys an active career encompassing both performance and teaching throughout Europe and the United States. As an internationally active pedagogue, Noelle is currently a Director of the Grand School of Music (New Hope, PA) and serves as Cello Professor for Bucks County Community College. She also conducts the Youth Orchestra of Bucks County’s Ripieno String Orchestra (Newtown, PA) and is a member of the string faculty at the George School (Newtown, PA). Noelle has also most recently been invited to participate in the ECSOC (Elizabeth College Summer Orchestral Course) in Guernsey, U.K. as part of the cello faculty.
Recent performances include the original version of Tchaikovsky’s Rococo Variations with the Old York Road Symphony, Vivaldi’s Double Cello Concerto with the Bach Festival Orchestra, Porpora’s Cello Concerto in G Major with Amici Strings (Philadelphia, PA, USA) and the Korngold Cello Concerto with the Guernsey Sinfonietta with praise such as “she really understands what she is playing in Korngold” (Bennett Lerner, pianist). Noelle was also recently featured as solo cellist for a Nakashima Foundation for Peace event, upon personal invitation by Mira Nakashima-Yarnall. Other performances and collaborations include the UK premiere of solo cello work Intimation by Australian composer David Holyoake at the Royal Academy of Music as well as having worked with New York based photographer Don Freeman on the soundtrack for a documentary to accompany his acclaimed book, Artists Handmade Houses.
Noelle has performed with such ensembles as the Philly Pops Orchestra, Philadelphia International Music Festival (PIMF) Piano Trio, Bach Festival Orchestra (Principal), Riverside Symphonia, baroque ensemble La Fiocco (soloist), Pennsylvania Sinfonia (Asst. Principal), L’Offerta Musicale Venezia, New York Consort of Viols, the Royal Academy of Music’s Symphony, Concert and Opera Orchestras, Guernsey Sinfonietta (Principal), Rehearsal Orchestra, Conservatorium van Amsterdam Symfonieorkest (Asst. Principal), Guernsey Choral and Orchestral Society (Soloist and Principal), London Arts Orchestra (Co-Principal), CUNY New Music Ensemble in New York City (Principal), and the New York Youth Symphony. Having lived in the Unites States, Holland and the UK, Noelle has performed in many venues from Carnegie Hall, Baryshnikov Arts Center, The Duke’s Hall, Bernard Haitinkzaal, St James’s Piccadilly, The Union League of Philadelphia and Bryant Park, NYC. Upcoming engagements for the 2018-2020 seasons include several concerti with Philadelphia based string ensemble, Amici Strings (www.amicistrings.com).
Alongside her regular performance and teaching schedule, Noelle enjoys organizing and performing for charitable events and causes. Noelle has recently organized a string orchestra to perform in the Baker Street Pedestrian Underpass in London to raise awareness for homelessness in the UK as well as being honored during a solo performance for the American Heart Association.
Noelle plays on both a Joseph Hill cello, c. 1770 London and a Luis & Clark carbon fibre cello.