Miklós Perényi

Photo of Miklós Perényi

Haworth International Chair in Cello

International Tutor in Cello

Miklós Perényi is the RNCM’s Haworth International Chair in Cello and is recognised as one of the greatest cellists of his generation

Born in Hungary, Miklós began cello lessons at the age of five with Miklós Zsámboki and gave his first concert in Budapest at the age of nine. He went on to study with Enrico Mainardi in Rome and Ede Banda in Budapest, and in 1963 became a prizewinner at the International Pablo Casals Cello Competition in Budapest. In 1974 he joined the faculty at the Franz Liszt Academy where he has held a professorship since 1980. He was honoured with the Kossuth-Prize in 1980 and the Bartók-Pásztory-Prize in 1987.

Miklós has appeared in the world’s major musical centres, performing regularly around Europe, in Japan and China and in North and South America. His festival engagements have included Edinburgh, Lucerne, Prague, Salzburg, Vienna, Hohenems, Warsaw, Berlin, Kronberg, and the Pablo Casals Festival in Prades, France.

With a repertoire ranging from the 17th century to the present, he appears as a soloist with orchestras, in solo and duo recitals and in chamber ensembles. Beyond performing and teaching, he also devotes his energies to composition of works for solo cello and for instrumental ensembles of various sizes.

Among his closest colleagues is the pianist András Schiff, with whom he has appeared at the Schubertiade Schwarzenberg, the Edinburgh Festival and the Ruhr Festival. Recently, the duo played at Cologne’s Philharmonie, the Schwetzingen Festival, London’s Wigmore Hall and the 92nd Street in New York.