Popper Cello Academy 2026
David Popper: The Art of High School of Cello Playing and Preparatory Studies
Where technique and music unite.
Dates
17-22 October 2026
Location
Thury Castle, Vรกrpalota, Hungary
Participants
15 selected young cellists
7 countries
Artistic Concept
At the heart of the Popper Cello Academy is the meeting point of technique and musical expression.
David Popperโs รฉtudes are approached not only as studies in instrumental technique, but as music with character, imagination and artistic purpose. Through individual work and shared exploration, participants are encouraged to connect technical understanding with their own musical ideas and repertoire.
The Academy in Practice
Each of the fifteen participants will receive six 45-minute individual lessons โ two with each of the three professors, including work both with and without piano.
The individual lessons are complemented by three รtude Workshops, an Open Masterclass, the Popper รtude Challenge, Cello Ensemble rehearsals and performance opportunities.
Together, these different settings create a continuous exchange between individual work, listening, shared learning and performance.
From รtude to Performance
Three รtude Workshops explore the Academyโs central theme from different perspectives:
What is an รฉtude?
Technique โ Musical Thinking
รtude as Performance
The journey continues with the Popper รtude Challenge, where the รฉtude leaves the practice room and is performed on stage.
The Challenge is not a competition. It is an opportunity for participants to focus on the character of the music, its technical demands and their own artistic identity โ and to experience the รฉtude as a genuine concert piece.
Professors
Professors at the Academy represent the distinguished traditions of European cello schools, bringing diverse artistic perspectives and pedagogical approaches together on a common platform.
๐ญ๐บ Csaba Onczay
Professor Emeritus, Liszt Academy of Music, Budapest
A defining figure of modern cello playing, he has built an exceptional international career as both performer and teacher. He is the recipient of Hungaryโs highest artistic distinction, the Kossuth Prize, and has also been awarded the Liszt Prize and the BartรณkโPรกsztory Prize.
Professor Emeritus at the Liszt Ferenc Academy of Music in Budapest, he has served as visiting professor at the Hochschule fรผr Musik Freiburg (Germany), the Oberlin Conservatory (USA), and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in Bloomington. For fifteen years he was a regular guest professor at the IU Summer String Academy. Through his masterclasses and dedicated teaching, he has profoundly influenced generations of cellists worldwide.
๐ฆ๐น Martin Rummel
President, Bruckner University, Linz
A distinguished Austrian cellist with a broad international career. Since 2021, he has served as President of the Bruckner University in Linz, where he is actively engaged in shaping contemporary approaches to higher music education.
Alongside his academic leadership, he remains active as a performer and teacher, giving masterclasses worldwide and inspiring a new generation of cellists.
He has recorded the complete High School of Cello Playing by David Popper, offering a unique and comprehensive artistic perspective on one of the most important pedagogical works in the cello repertoire.
๐ฉ๐ช Tobias Stosiek
Professor, University of Music and Performing Arts (KUG), Graz
An internationally respected German cellist and pedagogue, he has built a distinguished career as both performer and teacher. He currently serves as Professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz (KUG) and regularly appears as jury member at major international cello competitions.
Particularly close to his artistic work is the pedagogical legacy of David Popper. Through his innovative edition of Popperโs รฉtudes โ including bass accompaniment and harmonic guidance designed to support intonation and musical understanding โ he continues to develop new approaches connecting technical training with musical expression.
Pianists
The Academyโs pianists share a strong professional connection to the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest and a long-standing collaboration with the David Popper International Cello Competition, bringing extensive experience in working with cellists to the Academy.
Zsuzsanna Homor
Pianist Zsuzsanna Homor graduated from the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, where she later completed her DLA degree and currently serves as Associate Professor. A prizewinner of several national and international competitions, she has developed an active career as a soloist and chamber musician, performing in Hungary and internationally. Her first recording was released by Hungaroton Records in 2005.
Imre Dani
Pianist Imre Dani graduated from the Liszt Academy of Music in Budapest, where he completed his DLA degree in 2026. In 2014, he won first prize at the 21st Johannes Brahms International Competition in Pรถrtschach. An active chamber musician, he performs in a wide variety of instrumental ensembles and is regularly invited as a pianist to international festivals and competitions, including the International Musicians Seminar at Prussia Cove, the Bartรณk World Competition and the Kodรกly International Competition.
Concerts at the Academy
Performance is an essential part of the Popper Cello Academy. During the Academy, the stage becomes another place of learning โ where participants can experience their professors as performing artists and where the work of the week is ultimately shared with an audience.
18 October 2026
19:00 ยท Thury Castle
Tobias Stosiek & Nataลกa Veljkoviฤ
Tobias Stosiekโs concert with pianist Nataลกa Veljkoviฤ places Franz Schubert at the centre of the evening. Schubert has long been an important part of Stosiekโs artistic work, including his own arrangements for cello. As the musical world approaches the 200th anniversary of Schubertโs death in 2028, the concert offers a personal perspective on a composer whose music continues to inspire new interpretations.
20 October 2026
19:00 ยท Thury Castle
Martin Rummel & Imre Dani
The concert explores lesser-known works by David Popper, revealing rarely heard sides of the composer and virtuoso cellist. Schubert also enters the programme through songs arranged for cello by Popper himself โ creating a musical dialogue with the first professorsโ concert and reflecting Martin Rummelโs long-standing engagement with Popper as performer, recording artist and editor.
21 October 2026
18:30 ยท Thury Castle
Popper Cello Academy Final Concert
The Final Concert brings participants and professors together on stage in a programme shaped by the musical work of the Academy. Among its highlights will be Julius Klengelโs Hymnus, performed by the Academyโs cello ensemble, and David Popperโs Requiem for three cellos and piano, performed by the Academyโs three professors. Together, they place shared music-making at the heart of the Academyโs final evening.
