Curriculum Vitae
Prof. Manuel Fischer-Dieskau
"Manuel Fischer-Dieskau handles his instrument with dreamlike ease, evoking a sensuality that goes straight to the heart"
(Radio K1)
"Like his father at his best, Manuel Fischer-Dieskau knows how to intervene in a way that brings the music to life; he draws out the full range of expression from the scores."
(MusicWebInternational)
"Manuel Fischer-Dieskau offers a suave, nuanced shaping of the melodies that is both intelligent and expressive"
(The Strad Magazine)
Cellist Manuel Fischer-Dieskau is undoubtedly one of the outstanding musicians of his generation. His experience as a chamber musician and soloist alongside artists such as Christian Zacharias, Cyprien Katsaris, Katja & Marielle Labèque, Paul Meyer, Sabine Meyer, Eduard Brunner, Viktoria Mullova, François Leleux, Reinhard Goebel, and Christoph Poppen, among many others, makes him a sought-after and highly regarded partner on international concert stages.
After studying with Wolfgang Boettcher in Berlin, Janos Starker in the United States, William Pleeth in London, and Arto Noras in Helsinki, MFD began his professional career as a cellist with the internationally renowned Cherubini Quartet, with which he performed on all the world’s major stages until 1995.
Between 1996 and 2008, MFD regularly appeared as a guest principal cellist with the symphony orchestras of NDR Hamburg, HR Frankfurt, SWR Freiburg/Stuttgart, and WDR Cologne, and held a teaching position at the Saarbrücken University of Music.
MFD has released numerous CD recordings for the labels EMI Classics (Warner), Onyx, Phillips, and MDG, which have received the highest international acclaim. His 2019 recording of Ludwig van Beethoven’s cello sonatas with the exceptional Canadian pianist Connie Shih (Mozarteum Salzburg) also received boundless critical acclaim: “Rarely does the listener experience such a successful blend of technical brilliance, artistic mastery, and an audible joy in playing as in this interpretation of Beethoven’s cello sonatas. A unique listening experience!”
(Klassik.com)
MFD is also deeply engaged with playing the Baroque cello and historically informed performance practice. He performs J.S. Bach’s solo suites on both the modern and Baroque cellos, as well as the five-string violoncello piccolo.
Another of MFD’s passions is composing. In recent years, he has written numerous compositions for a wide variety of ensembles. Since 2023, these have included his composition “Drei Gesichter” (Three Faces)—a concert poem for solo cello and mixed choir —at the CellEast Festival in Bucharest; his “Requiem Viridem” for cello ensemble and recitation in Paris; “Gesang der Nymphen” (Song of the Nymphs) for soprano, violin, and cello at the Marvão International Music Festival in Portugal, and his oratorio “Der auf dem Theon sitzt, lacht” for girls’ choir and orchestra, “In Memoriam Franz Xaver Ohnesorg,” at the Cologne Philharmonie.
Since 2008, MFD has been a professor of cello and chamber music at the School of Music at Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz. Many of his students now hold permanent positions in German orchestras or are successful members of chamber music ensembles. In addition, students in his class have won prizes at international competitions, such as the Dvořák Competition in Prague (1st Prize, 2023), the Augustin Aponte International Music Competition in Tenerife (1st Prize, 2023), and the CellEast International Cello Competition in Bucharest (2nd and 3rd Prizes, 2026). With the cello ensemble “UNICELL,” composed of students from his class, he stages at least one major concert project each year and has performed with his students at the Mainz State Parliament, the “Duc de Bourgogne” Festival in Dijon, and the Cité internationale universitaire in Paris. A large open-air concert is planned for 2027 in the Botanical Garden of Johannes Gutenberg University.
He plays a master instrument by the renowned Italian violin maker Sergio Peresson (1913– 1991), dubbed the “Stradivarius of the 20th century” (New York Times).
