Erin Ellis

Cellist Erin Ellis leads a versatile career as a performer and teacher. She has appeared as a soloist, chamber musician, and educator across the United States as well as in Colombia, Germany, Canada, Chile, Italy, and Holland.  Her CD recording of J. Dall’Abaco’s 11 Capricci for solo cello, released on Albany Records, garnered positive reviews noting “flawless” technique and “a fresh approach.”  Additional discography releases include featured soloist with the Georgia State Choirs. Dr. Ellis performs regularly as part of the Meliora Duo with pianist Dr. Kevin Chance. She is also an accomplished baroque cellist and performs as a soloist and chamber musician with the Atlanta Baroque Orchestra.

As a scholar, Dr. Ellis is a regular presenter at professional conferences at home and abroad, at State, Regional, National, and International venues. She has conducted masterclasses and lectured at universities of regional and national recognition. She is currently serving as the Chair of the National Conference Committee for American String Teachers Association National Conference.  She spends her summers in Leicester, VT, performing and coaching chamber music at Point CounterPoint Chamber Music Camp. 

A dedicated music educator, she maintains an active private studio and is Associate Professor of Cello at West Virginia University, where she teaches cello, coaches WVU’s graduate string quartet (Montani Quartet), and coordinates the string chamber music program.  Her students have received recognition at the MTNA Chamber Music Competition, have been Teaching Fellows at Interlochen Summer Arts Camp, and have been awarded first prize for Collaborative Faculty Student Mentored Research at WVU.  Her students have also been accepted to prestigious organizations such as Green Mountain Chamber Music Festival, Brevard Summer Music Festival, Sewanee Summer Music Program (as an Orchestral Fellow), Carnegie Hall’s NYO2 program, and Interlochen Academy of the Arts boarding school.  Recent graduates have received graduate assistantships and significant stipends for continued study, including a fellowship at the Kennedy Center.  Several of her students have received scholarships for Suzuki Cello Teacher Training and are influential teachers in the region and abroad.  

Born in Birmingham, Alabama, Dr. Ellis began her cello studies as a Suzuki student at the age of 4. She earned Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and she completed Suzuki teacher training with Tanya Carey. She went on to receive the Doctorate of Musical Arts degree with a minor in Early Music from the Eastman School of Music, where she was recognized with the Graue Award for Excellence in Musicology. She studied the cello with Richard Aaron, David Ying, Alison Wells, Phoebe Carrai, and Martha Gerschefski.

Ailbhe McDonagh

Ailbhe McDonagh is an internationally recognised cellist and composer, known for her work as both a soloist and chamber musician. Praised by Fanfare Magazine for her “flawless technique, faultless intonation, and a strong yet meltingly sweet tone,” she has built a distinguished career through performances, recordings, and broadcasts that have reached audiences around the world.

Her latest album entitled 'Bach: Complete Solo Cello Suites' was released on the Steinway & Sons label in 2024 and is the first recording of these works, composed by JS Bach, by an Irish cellist.

As an accomplished chamber musician, Ailbhe collaborates with the acclaimed pianist John O’Conor, with her sister Orla McDonagh, and with violinist Lynda O’Connor. She is a member of the Ficino Ensemble and the traditional Irish music crossover group Trio Elatha.

Ailbhe's debut solo album, ‘It's a Cello Thing’ (2012), was named CD of the Week on Ireland’s national classical music station, RTÉ Lyric FM. Her 2020 album, ‘Skellig’, was featured in the Irish Examiner’s Top Albums of the Year.

In 2021, Ailbhe released ‘Beethoven: Complete Cello Sonatas’ with John O'Conor on the Steinway label. Classical Music Sentinel states "McDonagh and O'Conor coalesce perfectly, as if propelled by the music's undertow, and echo each other's expressive mien with dynamic balance" and proclaims it as one of their Essential Recordings. AllMusic gave the album 4.5 out of 5 stars.

Ailbhe is also an established composer with over 250 published works and commissions to her name. Her debut orchestral work 'Irish Isles Suite' was recorded and released by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra in 2023. Her much anticipated violin concerto the 'The Irish Four Seasons' was released in 2024.

“An idiomatic and compelling synthesis of traditional Irish music and classical form, with captivating melodies and striking violin writing throughout.” - BBC Music Magazine on The Irish Four Seasons

She is a widely commissioned and celebrated composer with a breadth of works written for orchestra, chamber music and solo instruments. Some notable commissions include her String Quartet No.1 for the Appalachian Chamber Music Festival, USA, an eight hand piano work for the opening of the Whyte Recital Hall at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin, a piano duet for the Dublin International Chamber Music Festival, and a solo cello suite supported by the Arts Council of Ireland.

Her String Quartet No.2 was commissioned by the National String Quartet Foundation of Ireland and premiered by the Ficino Ensemble during their December 2023 national tour. The work, also called the "Lore Quartet" was featured by The Strad magazine as their "Premiere of the Month".

Other works include her very popular cello and piano piece Skellig from the album of the same name released in 2020. Valentia for cello and piano was composed for her 2022 national tour of Ireland with pianist John O'Conor. In 2024 she composed a series of five Piano Nocturnes. Her Dance Suite for Solo Cello was published in 2026 and made available for solo violin and viola also.

She has released several collections of her pedagogical music through London-based publishers Boosey & Hawkes, notably the popular book series ‘It’s a Piano Thing’ (2017) and ‘It’s a Cello Thing’ (2021). Ailbhe has also composed pieces for violin, viola, double bass, guitar, harp and ukulele which feature in the Boosey & Hawkes 'Grade by Grade' series. In 2025, she published another collection of books titled 'It's a Violin Thing'.

Her compositions have been featured in the syllabi of leading music institutions worldwide including ABRSM, Hal Leonard, RCM Canada, London College of Music and RIAM Local Centre Examinations.

Ailbhe is a Professor of Cello at the Royal Irish Academy of Music where she has taught since 2010. She is also a director and co-founder of CelloFest Ireland. She is in demand as a masterclass instructor. ​Ailbhe performs on an Andrea Postacchini cello from 1833.