Kathleen Balfe has lived in Spain since 2003, where she has built a multifaceted career and developed a variety of styles as a soloist and as a member of various ensembles. A principal cellist of the City of Granada Orchestra between 2007 and 2022 and principal cellist of the Modesto Symphony Orchestra since 2024, she also has been a guest principal cellist with the Royal Orchestra of Seville and the Tenerife Symphony Orchestra.
Kathleen has performed as a soloist on numerous occasions including the premiere of the opera La Bella Susona by Alberto Carretero with the ROSS, the premiere of Kammerkonzert no.2 by Miguel Gálvez-Taroncher with the OCG conducted by José Ramón Encinar, Sinfonia Concertante by Prokofiev with the New World Symphony conducted by Alasdair Neale, and the arrangement/reconstruction of Debussy’s Suite para Violonchelo by Sally Beamish with the OCG conducted by Joseph Swensen.
As a founding member of the Ensemble NeoArs Sonora, she performed in numerous festivals such as Córdoba XX Festival de Música Contemporánea, Festival de Música Española Manuel de Falla en Cádiz, Festival de Música Clásica en el Escorial, Festival de Bernaola, Quincena Musical de San Sebastián, Jornadas de Música Contemporánea de Sevilla, el Ciclo de Música Contemporánea del Centro Guerrero y el Festival Internacional de Música y Danza de Granada.
Ms. Balfe has collaborated as a chamber musician with the Benaïm Quartet, the Quantum Ensemble, Messiaen Ensemble and the Taller Atlántico, among others. Currently she is a founding member of the Íkaro String Quartet on the island of Tenerife where she is based.
Kathleen Balfe can be heard on Verso, Bis y RCA Records as a member of different groups.
Website: https://cellobalfe.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cellobalfe/
