Oliver Mascarenhas

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Oliver Mascarenhas received his first cello lessons from his father at the age of five.

He later transferred to Jürgen Wolf in Düsseldorf and subsequently studied with Prof. Maria Kliegel and Prof. Frans Helmerson at the Cologne University of Music and Performing Arts.

In 2002, he completed his studies with Konrad Haeßler at the Hanover University of Music, Drama, and Media.

A native of Mönchengladbach, he won his first audition with the NDR Radio Philharmonic Orchestra Hanover in his fourth semester at the age of 22, a position he still holds today. He has played over 2,000 concerts with the orchestra and has toured halfway around the world.

He is also active as a soloist and in chamber music, winning prizes at national and international competitions.

In 2020, he produced a solo debut album to mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Austrian pianist Friedrich Gulda, which was nominated for the 2021 Opus Klassik Award in the "Classics Without Borders" category.

In addition to his orchestral work, the versatile musician enthusiastically creates and organizes interdisciplinary projects in which classical music meets jazz, pop, or hip-hop.

Oliver Mascarenhas, thanks to his acting studies, was a news anchor for NDR 1's "Hallo Niedersachsen" (Hallo Lower Saxony) and is a happy single father of two children.

He plays a cello by the Italian master violin maker Josef Gaffino Castagnieri, built in Paris in 1746.