Israeli-Mexican-American cellist Michal Shein is a performer and master educator focused on curating cross-cultural performance projects and intensive educational initiatives. She is the Artistic Director of Cellisimo, a high level cello festival for Spanish speaking cellists with limited resources which includes masterclasses with world-class faculty, special lectures and wellness sessions. The festival has been described as "...one of the most important and unique festivals of its kind in Latin America"(- Alvaro Bitran, cellist of the Grammy award-winning Cuarteto Latinoamericano)
Michal is recognized for her pedagogical style that nurtures her students with effective pedagogical methods for solid and positive musical advancement. Currently, she teaches at the Boston String Academy, an award-winning El Sistema inspired string program. Michal also serves on the faculty of the Longy School of Music of Bard College and the University of Rhode Island.
Michal’s students have been winners in competitions, have received admission to top festivals such as BUTI Tanglewood, Brevard, YOLA Festival, Greenwood, and NSO. As a teacher, Michal has been in high demand in many Boston music programs such as NEC Preparatory School, Conservatory Lab Charter School El Sistema, Brookline Music School, BYSO, among others. Michal also teaches at several festivals, most recently at Festival Internacional de Violoncello Leon (Mexico) and will be a judge at the Concurso Internacional de Violoncello in Monterrey, Mexico in fall of 2023.
Aside from her diverse educational work, Michal maintains a career as a soloist, orchestral cellist and chamber musician. Some highlights of this past season were collaborations with Celebrity Series of Boston, as well as a new recording of the Vivaldi sonatas with guitarist and NEC alum Adam Levin. Michal also appears with many orchestras and ensembles in Boston including the Rhode Island Philharmonic, Portland Symphony, Boston Philharmonic Orchestra, and others.
Michal received her B.A. in Music from U.C. Berkeley and an M.A. at New England Conservatory, studying with Natasha Brofsky. Michal lives in an intentional cohousing community in Jamaica Plain, with her husband Jonas and her young children Noam and Hadas.