Cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason. Photo: Decca Classics /Jake Turney
August 7, 2020
Cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason shot to international fame when he performed at the Royal wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in 2018. Here’s everything you need to know about the brilliant young musician.
Who is Sheku Kanneh-Mason? When was he born?
Sheku Kanneh-Mason was born in April 1999 and grew up in Nottingham in the UK. Neither of his parents are musicians but the Kanneh-Mason family has become a musical powerhouse.
Sheku is the third of seven children, all of whom are exceptionally musical. Isata Kanneh-Mason, the eldest, is a brilliant pianist (who recently released her debut album, Romance, featuring Clara Schumann’s piano music), Braimah is a violinist with Chineke! Orchestra and is currently studying at the Royal Academy of Music – as is Konya Kanneh-Mason, who plays violin and piano. Jeneba is just 17 and studies cello at the Royal Academy’s Junior Academy, where she’s joined by her sister Aminata who plays violin and piano. Finally, Mariatu (10), plays cello and piano.
BBC Young Musician
In 2016 Sheku Kanneh-Mason first began making waves in the musical world when he won BBC Young Musician, becoming the first black musician to win the award in its history. The following year, he was invited to performed at the BAFTAs, where he played a special arrangement of Leonard Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah’.
Inspiration
Sheku’s debut album, Inspiration, was released in 2018 and included the arrangement of ‘Hallelujah’ and the cellist’s own arrangement of Bob Marley’s song ‘No Woman, No Cry’. The album also included a recording of Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1, the work which Kanneh-Mason played to win BBC Young Musician. Inspiration peaked at No. 11 in the UK Official Album Chart following his performance at the Royal Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=49&v=ioRvYLDIhro&feature=emb_logo
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