Santiago Cañón-Valencia, cellist

Who or what inspired you to pursue a career in music and who or what have been the most
important influences on your musical life and career?

I’d say my family is the reason why I started music. We are all musicians (my dad plays the clarinet, my mum plays the cello and my sister plays violin) I grew up surrounded by music and I knew I wanted to be a musician from that point on.

What have been the greatest challenges of your career so far?

My priority has always been to be myself unapologetically on and off stage. Personality and
individuality are important traits first and foremost before considering how they impact music.
While I do think that that the playing is obviously very important, things like original and innovative programming, the way you present yourself on-stage, and the way you interact with your audience are all things that are impacted by true personality. These things can all be challenging if any of these elements fall from what’s “expected” or “accepted” within the classical music circuit.

However, I think that being 100% yourself is how you build a genuine audience/following, and that is worth all the challenges you may face along the way.

Which performances/recordings are you most proud of?

Every performance/recording where I’ve felt absolute freedom.

Which particular works/composers do you think you perform best?

I have a particular fascination for early music and also 20th century and contemporary music.

How do you make your repertoire choices from season to season?

I try to build exciting and different programmes by adding unknown works (new or old) and balancing these with more known works/composers. The one condition I have is that I must love every piece I am playing in the programme.

Do you have a favourite concert venue to perform in and why?

Putting acoustics and aesthetics aside…any hall with a great audience is my favourite.

What do you do off stage that provides inspiration on stage?

Painting, reading, going to museums, listening to non-classical music…I think it’s all about learning and absorbing whatever you love.

What is your most memorable concert experience?

There are so many…but I would say that the first time I played with an orchestra when I was 6 will
always be memorable for me. Whether I knew it or not, I think that was the defining point that
made me realize I wanted to be a profesional musician.

As a musician, what is your definition of success?

Feeling proud of everything you do.

What do you feel needs to be done to grow classical music’saudiences?

I feel like a lot is being done in order to grow audiences, but there are still lots of stereotypes and old-fashioned ideals that play a big role in making classical music alienating to some people.
Specifically, I find that there is still a considerable amount of pushback when it comes to
contemporary music, whether it is a new concerto or new pieces in a recital programme… sometimes you really have to work hard to try and convince presenters/halls to program new works, and it’s still not always 100% successful.

What advice would you give to young or aspiring musicians?

Always be yourself and strive to find your own voice, but do so whilst remaining humble. Be aware that there isn’t a limit regarding how much you can learn and evolve as a person and an
artist.

BBC New Generation Artist Santiago Cañón-Valencia performs in this year’s Cheltenham Festival on Wednesday 10 July. Find out more

(Artist image: Arts Media Group)