Where are they now…
Cellist Natalie Helm was born in Louisville, KY and began playing the cello at the age of 11. She studied with Peter Wiley and David Soyer at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia where she received her Bachelor of Music in 2011. Natalie has performed with orchestras around the country including the Richardson Symphony, the Louisville Orchestra, the World Youth Symphony Orchestra, and the Colburn Symphony Orchestra. Top prizes and other performances include the Lennox International Competition, Blount-Slawson Young Artist Competition, Kingsville Young Artist Competition, MTNA, Schmidbauer Competition, and NPR’s From the Top. She has collaborated with the American Contemporary Ballet and as an avid supporter of new music, has premiered many new works. As part of this process, Natalie has had the opportunity to work with composers such as Joan Towers, Jennifer Higdon, Krzysztof Penderecki, Christopher Rogerson, and Michael Djupstrom.
As a chamber musician, Natalie has performed internationally with musicians such as Daniel Hope, Robert Levin, Roberto Diaz, Ida Kavafian, Paul Coletti, Steve Tenenbom, Robert McDonald, and members of the Quatuor Ebene. In Los Angeles, she has performed in concerts with The Da Camera Society, the Colburn Chamber Music Series, and as a member of the Los Angeles Cello Quartet, the Positive Motions Concert Series. During the summer, she has been a Beth Newdome Fellowship Artist at the Amelia Island Chamber Music Festival, a Young Artist at Music From Angel Fire, and a member of the Curtis On Tour in Europe Ensemble. As a fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center, Natalie was named a recipient of the 2011 Karl Zeise Memorial Cello Award. She has also attended other summer festivals including Taos Music Festival, Sarasota Music Festival, Kneisel Hall, Aspen Music Festival, Bowdoin Music Festival, and Interlochen Arts Camp.
As an orchestral musician, Natalie has worked under conductors such as Alan Gilbert, Simon Rattle, Charles Dutoit, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Christoph Eschenbach, among many others. She has been principal of the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, the Curtis Opera Orchestra, assistant principal of Symphony in C, and section of the New York String Orchestra Seminar. She is also currently a substitute for the West Coast Symphony and the New World Symphony.
Natalie is currently a student of Ronald Leonard at the Colburn Conservatory of Music and plays on a Martin Cornelissen cello generously on loan from the Maestro Foundation.
