South African cellist Abel Selaocoe is one of the most captivating performers on the world stage today. With an irresistible energy, he has taken the world by storm since bursting onto the scene in 2021 with his BBC Proms debut. Whether with symphony orchestras, in iconic club venues or at major mainstream festivals, Abel combines virtuosic cello and vocal performance with improvisation and sweeps audiences along in captivating shows which blaze with creation, sending audiences home on a high.
Abel grew up in Sebokeng, where he first began learning cello with his brother at the African Cultural Organisation of South Africa (ACOSA) in Soweto. Abel’s affinity for the cello became quickly apparent and he continued his studies on scholarship at St John’s College before moving to the UK where he found a musical home at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. In Manchester, he met the musicians who are now his most regular collaborators, and this has led to the formation of his bands, Chesaba and the Bantu Ensemble.
Abel has quickly amassed fans all over the world, who connect with his music on a visceral and deeply personal level. His debut album on Warner Classics Hae Ke Kae was released to critical acclaim in 2022 and his second album Hymns of Bantu will be released in early 2025, celebrating his South African heritage and tracing his ancestral path that leads into his vast influences including Western classical repertoire.
Abel plays a copy of a circa 1735 Montagnana, made by Robin Aitchison in 2020 with the generous support of the Alan Powell Trust.
Abel's official biography and promotional images can be downloaded from Intermusica.
Abel’s solo recitals are sonically immersive explorations of the musical worlds which inspire and drive him. Abel’s use of extended techniques and loops build a layered sound world of vocals and cello which pushes the boundaries of how the cello is played and perceived.
“My goal in my musical life is to take this instrument that I’ve learned from a very young age in a classical manner and connect it to where I’m from, allowing the culture of a stringed instrument like the cello or violin to evolve as it visits different cultural spaces.”
Abel formed the Bantu Ensemble in 2022 and together they celebrate an innovative approach to reimagining classical music, moving seamlessly across a multitude of genres and styles. Their programmes, which are based around Abel’s original compositions alongside works by composers who inspire him, incorporate classical, traditional and jazz. Wowing audiences worldwide, and equally at home on classical and larger stages, they have sold out KOKO, London, recorded on Later… with Jools Holland, performed at e.g. Vienna Konzerthaus, Berlin Konzerthaus and Luxembourg Philharmonie and made their Carnegie Hall debut in October 2024.
Bantu Ensemble is made up of Abel (cello and vocals), Alan Keary (electric bass), Fred Thomas (piano) and Dudù Kouaté (African percussion).
Abel’s trio Chesaba are a forward thinking experimental African group formed in 2016, formed of Abel (cello and vocals), Alan Keary (electric bass) and Sidiki Dembélé (African percussion). Together they embrace their rich cultural influences from South Africa, Ivory Coast and Ireland and revel in improvisations and exploration to push the boundaries of their music making and draw new sounds from their instruments.
In addition to their trio performances, Chesaba perform in orchestral programmes and have performed at the BBC Proms with BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Lucerne Symphony Orchestra and Manchester Collective.
In demand with the top orchestras internationally, Abel is Artistic Partner of Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra and has performed with leading orchestras such as Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, London Symphony Orchestra and this season debuts with Aurora Orchestra and Australian Chamber Orchestra.
Abel offers thoughtful and thought provoking programmes, often rooted in his own works and incorporating free improvisations alongside African rhythms and groove. His performances draw audiences on a musical and spiritual exploration of the ties between African and Western traditions. Abel will also premiere new concerti by two leading female composers over the coming seasons.
Abel is an innate music maker and has naturally found his voice in writing music both for himself, his ensembles and for other musicians. A natural outlet for his improvisatory musical process, his compositions draw from a wealth of musical experiences and influences. In 2022 he wrote his own cello concerto Four Spirits (commissioned by BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony and Philharmonie Zuidnederland). In July 2021, he received a Paul Hamlyn Foundation award for his compositional work.
Abel thrives in exploratory settings, developing new projects with contemporaries and building lasting friendships and partnerships through music. He enjoys working with musicians from a wide variety of genres and collaborations past and present include:
BCUC Kit Downes Ludovico Einaudi Hilary Hahn Gareth Lubbe Seckou Keita Simo Lagnawi / Gnawa London Yo-Yo Ma Moor Mother Oumou Sangaré Bernhard Schimpelsberger Vincent Ségal The King’s Singers Ballaké Sissoko Giovanni Sollima
