about

Dutch cellist Karlien Bartels, a graduate from the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris, won first prizes at the Prinses Christina Competition, the Young Music Talent Foundation and was admitted at an early age to the 'Facilities for Excellent Young Musicians', a special program for Holland's most talented young musicians financed by the Dutch Government, which enabled her to go abroad, give concerts, and attend masterclasses with renowned cellists such as David Geringas, Alexander Rudin or Tsuyoshi Tsutsumi. She was awarded with scholarships from the VSB Foundation, Prins Bernhard Foundation and the prestigious Huygens Grant. In Paris she was chosen « lauréat boursier » de la Banque Société Générale and Fondation Meyer, and obtained 3rd and special prize in the « Concours International Flame Paris ». 

Her musical activities brought her to perform in most European countries, in Japan and the USA. As a soloist she performed most of the well-known celloconcertos by Schumann, Dvorak, Haydn, Vivaldi, Saint-Saëns, Bloch, Lalo and Elgar. She played recitals at the Rudolfinum in Prague, the Reduta concert hall in Bratislava, the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ in Amsterdam and performed in most of Paris' major concert halls such as Salle Pleyel, Salle Gaveau, Cité de la Musique, Invalides, Opéra Comique. She was invited at numerous festivals such as Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival, Festival de Richelieu, the International Chamber Music Festival Schiermonnikoog, Kraków Cello Spring etc. Together with japanese pianist Mami Hagiwara - 1st prize winner of the Geneva Competition - she played many recitals, and toured in Japan. An avid and passionate chamber musician, Karlien has been a (founding) member of many successful chamber groups such as the Isis Quartet, the Paris-based Trio Lehmann, as well as the french Ensemble Eria. She is a member of the Gauguin Ensemble which she forms together with clarinetplayer Yfynke Hoogeveen and pianist Nata Tsvereli. Their album 'Color Soni' (2023) with trio’s of Brahms, Zemlinksy and Zuidam, was received with a 5***** by the dutch press.

Very fond of the symphonic repertoire, Karlien regularly plays in several renown orchestras such as the Orchestre de Paris, the Orchestre National d'Ile de France, and as (co-)principal in the National Orchestra of Belgium and the Philharmonie Oost Nederland. She worked with conductors like Llorin Maazel, Herbert Blomstedt, Paavo Järvi, Christoph Eschenbach and Andris Nelsons amongst many others.

At the age of twelve she was admitted to the Young Talent Class at the North Netherlands Conservatoire, where she subsequently studied with amongst others Troels Svane. Soon after completing grammar school she moved to Paris to study with Michel Strauss and Guillaume Paoletti at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Paris, and obtained her Master of Music with a 'Premier Prix'. Chamber music guidance she received from Itamar Golan, Vladimir Mendelssohn, Daria Hovora, Marc Coppey and Alain Meunier. She received a Post Graduate Degree as well from the Royal Conservatory of The Hague and the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna, where she perfectioned studies with Reinhard Latzko. She worked together and had masterclasses with artists such as Ivry Gitlis, Richard Aaron, Roland Pidoux, Xavier Phillips, Gustav Rivinius, Tanja Tetzlaff, Hatto Beyerle, the Juilliard String Quartet... 

Since 2012 she holds a teaching position at the ArtEZ Conservatoire in the Netherlands, and is frequently invited to teach masterclasses in Poland, France, Spain and the Netherlands. Karlien Bartels plays a cello by Claude Augustin Miremont (Paris 1882), on loan to her from the 'Nationaal Muziekinstrumenten Fonds', Amsterdam.