Christopher Franzius

Cello Soloist

“There are certain tonal qualities that stand out to me. The sound of the string is rich, refined and has a rather dark, noble timbre.”

Larsen Strings for Cello

About Christopher

The German cellist Christopher Franzius started his musical studies at the age of five and had his first public performances one year later. At the age of fifteen following several successful competitions for young cellists he was accepted into the preparatory division of the State College for Music and Theater in Hanover where he studied with Prof. Klaus Storck. During these years before graduation in Hanover, Mr. Franzius also had the opportunity to study with the renowned Russian cellist, Daniel Chafran.

He has been the recipient of scholarships from the Oscar & Vera Ritter Foundation, the Jürgen-Ponto Foundation, and the Federation of German Industries, BDI (Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie).

“Sovereign is my favourite set of strings. There are certain tonal qualities that stand out to me. The sound of the string is rich, refined and has a rather dark, noble timbre. It’s extremely resonant and the C string had great depth.

The string has a light response with the perceived high resistance under the bow, especially a quick response of short, powerful notes on the C string and brings the desired musical expression to the point.”

Christopher Franzius

Larsen Cello Sovereign

Through his participation in international masterclasses, Mr. Franzius has come into contact with such eminent soloists as Radu Aldulescu, Heinrich Schiff, and David Geringhas. Following numerous successful cello competitions, Mr. Franzius was appointed solo cellist at the German Opera upon the Rhine (Deutsche Oper am Rhein). He later became solo cellist with the WDR Radio Symphony Orchestra in Cologne (Sinfonieorchester des Westdeutschen Rundfunks). Mr. Franzius has also performed as a member of the distinguished Wagner Festival Orchestra in Bayreuth, Germany.

The list of renowned conductors with whom Mr. Franzius has worked is indeed impressive and includes, among others, Daniel Barenboim, Giuseppe Sinopoli, James Levine, Christoph Eschenbach, Herbert Blomstedt, Esa Pekka Salonen, Charles Dutoit, Christoph von Dohnányi, and Alan Gilbert.

Besides his chamber music and soloist activities, Mr. Franzius also devotes himself to composition. His discography includes 5 works for solo cello published by Wega-Verlag.

Since 2004, Mr. Franzius has been solo cellist with the internationally renowned NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra in Hamburg. He also teaches a class of young cellists at the College of Music in Lübeck.

Mr. Franzius plays an instrument created by the Venetian master Matteo Gofriller made in 1690.

Christopher Franzius

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