Max Geissler – Geneva Music Festival

Praised for his “superb artistry and beautiful sound”, cellist Max Geissler currently serves as the cellist and Co-Artistic Director of the mixed instrumentation new music ensemble Latitude 49 and is a highly sought-after chamber collaborator and educator. Before his Doctoral studies at Rice working with Desmond Hoebig, he earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan working with Richard Aaron.

Passionately expanding the breadth and scope of the standard repertoire, Max has participated in dozens of commissions and premieres, giving voice to an array of works ranging from inspiring student compositions all the way to collaborations with Pulitzer-prize winning composers. Working with Latitude 49, Max has recorded for New Amsterdam Records and has been showcased as a featured performer at the Bowling Green New Music Festival, Detroit’s Strange Beautiful Music, Constellation Chicago, and Princeton Sound Kitchen.

As an enthusiastic educator, Max is an in-demand masterclass clinician, having given classes at schools such as SUNY Fredonia, The Boston Conservatory at Berklee, and Baylor University. Students of his have gone on to continue their studies at major music schools, as well as perform in both local and international competitions. Max spends his summers on faculty at ENCORE Chamber Music in Cleveland, working closely with aspiring cellists and performing alongside good friends and colleagues.

Max is a lively advocate of the chamber music literature and takes any opportunity he can to excitedly share it with audiences. He has performed alongside and collaborated with artists such as Jon Kimura Parker, Clive Greensmith, Lynn Harrell, Cho-Liang Lin, Martin Beaver, Margaret Batjer, Brian Connelly, Desmond Hoebig, and James Dunham. Max is currently the Artistic Director for Kalmia Gardens Chamber Music, as well as a regular performer at the Geneva Music Festival. In addition to these festivals, Max has appeared as a Young Artist at La Jolla SummerFest, and performed as a part of the Taipei Music Academy and Festival in Taiwan.

Other Artist

Anna Petrova

Praised for her “artistic, clear and enlightened” performances (BBC Magazine) of “technical brilliance and complete emotional engagement" (Fanfare Magazine), Bulgarian pianist Anna Petrova performs extensively as both soloist and chamber musician around the globe.

Clara Lyon

Clara Lyon is an accomplished performer and curator who forges meaningful connections across sonic languages and societal contexts to foster investigation and imagination.

Clive Greensmith

From 1999 until its final season in 2013, Clive Greensmith was a member of the world-renowned Tokyo String Quartet, giving over one hundred performances each year in the most prestigious international venues, including New York’s Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House, London’s South Bank, Paris Chatelet, Berlin Philharmonie, Vienna Musikverein, and Suntory Hall in Tokyo.

Eliot Heaton

Violinist Eliot Heaton is the current Concertmaster of the Michigan Opera Theatre, Des Moines Metro Opera, and the Saginaw Bay Symphony.

Eric Wong

Celebrated for a “tone like toasted caramel. Amazing.” (Musical Toronto), Eric Wong is the violist of the Cavani String Quartet.

Esther Park

Pianist Esther Park has performed as a soloist with orchestras and in recitals across the United States as well as Asia and major European cities.