For over three decades, cellist Christopher Costanza has enjoyed a varied and exciting career as a soloist, chamber musician, and teacher. A winner of the Young Concert Artists International Auditions and a recipient of a prestigious Solo Recitalists Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, Mr. Costanza has performed to wide critical acclaim throughout the U.S., Canada, South America, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and Europe. His summer festival appearances include the Marlboro, Yellow Barn, Santa Fe, Taos, and Bravo! Vail Valley festivals. Mr. Costanza is a graduate of the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, where he studied cello with Laurence Lesser, David Wells, and Bernard Greenhouse, and chamber music with Eugene Lehner, Louis Krasner, and Leonard Shure.
Mr. Costanza joined the St. Lawrence String Quartet (SLSQ) in 2003. As a member of the SLSQ, he is an Artist in Residence at Stanford University, where he teaches cello and chamber music and performs concerts from the stages of the University’s concert halls to student dormitories and lecture halls. A strong proponent of contemporary music, Mr. Costanza has worked extensively with the world’s most notable composers, such as John Adams, Jonathan Berger, Osvaldo Golijov, Mark Applebaum, Pierre Boulez, Roberto Sierra, R. Murray Schafer, William Bolcom, John Corigliano, and Bright Sheng. As a student, he had the honor of studying Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time under the guidance of the composer.
Mr. Costanza’s discography includes chamber music and solo recordings on the Nonesuch, EMI/Angel, Naxos, Innova, Albany, and Summit labels. In 2006, he received a Grammy nomination for his recording of chamber works for winds and strings by Mozart. Additionally, several St. Lawrence String Quartet recordings on EMI have been nominated for Juno awards. In 2012, Mr. Costanza recorded the Six Suites for Solo Cello by J.S. Bach at the beautiful Banff Centre in Canada. Those recordings, along with his extensive commentary, are available for streaming on his website, costanzacello.com. In August 2019, the SLSQ released its recording of all six Op. 20 String Quartets of Haydn, and in the summer of 2023, the new recording label Phenotypic released the final two SLSQ recordings: two of the Op. 76 quartets by Haydn, and the Korngold Piano Quintet with pianist Stephen Prutsman.
Mr. Costanza is frequently heard on radio broadcasts worldwide, including the CBC in Canada, NPR in the United States, and on various European broadcasting networks. He is privileged to perform on an early 18th-century Venetian cello, part of the Harry R. Lange Collection of Musical Instruments and Bows at Stanford.
In addition to his varied musical interests, Mr. Costanza is an avid runner and hiker. A train enthusiast, he enjoys riding and exploring the passenger railways of the world. He is fascinated by architecture and seeks out innovative architectural offerings in his travels. At home in California, he is passionate about cooking, focusing his attention on new and creative dishes that take advantage of the abundance of remarkable organic local produce.