Gautier Capuçon established himself among the foremost French cellists of the twenty-first century before his twentieth birthday. Comparable to Mstislav Rostropovich, he also commands the piano, yet his keyboard explorations reach into jazz beyond classical confines. What stands out is the swift trajectory of his accomplishments: before reaching his mid-twenties he had secured first prizes in two major competitions and contributed to nearly twenty significant recordings with artists that included Martha Argerich and Myung-Whun Chung. His repertoire choices range from the standard works of Haydn, Beethoven, and Brahms to twentieth- and twenty-first-century pieces by Erwin Schulhoff, Hanns Eisler, and Éric Tanguy. In 2022 he founded the Fondation Gautier Capuçon to support young classical musicians. The following year he released the album Destination Paris.
Capuçon entered the world in Chambéry, France, on September 3, 1981. His brother, the celebrated violinist Renaud Capuçon, regularly joins him in performances of the Beethoven Triple Concerto and other chamber repertoire. Cello study began at age four, followed by piano lessons at seven. Both instruments were pursued at the École Nationale de Musique de Chambéry. In his teenage years he entered the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique de Paris, where Annie Cochet-Zakine was among his teachers. After graduating in 1997 he remained for three further years of cello instruction with Philippe Muller and additional faculty. During this period he performed with the European Union Youth Orchestra and the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester, and in 1999 he won first prize at the André Navarra International Cello Competition. Following his 2000 graduation he studied with Heinrich Schiff in Vienna. By then he was appearing regularly with leading European orchestras and conductors. His chamber-music colleagues have included Daniel Barenboim, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, and Yuja Wang.
He has recorded for EMI, Virgin Classics, and TDK, though Erato remains his exclusive label. Early releases featured the acclaimed Haydn Concertos No. 1, 2 & 4 with Daniel Harding and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra on EMI, and the Virgin Classics duet album Face à Face with his brother, presenting works by Kodály, Halvorsen, and others. In 2007 he married fellow cellist Delphine Borsarello. During 2020 he joined his brother and Frank Braley for a recording of Beethoven’s Ghost and Archduke piano trios and inaugurated Un Été en France, an annual festival that travels across France. Also in 2022 the Fondation Gautier Capuçon was established to provide scholarships, performance opportunities, and, through a partnership with Warner Classics, first recordings under the series title “La Fondation Gautier Capuçon Présente”; pianist Kim Bernard’s accounts of music by Chopin, Debussy, and Ravel constituted the initial release. In 2023, ahead of Paris hosting the 2024 Summer Olympics, Capuçon issued the album Destination Paris.
