Cello Lessons

Jake Klinkenborg, M.Mus., B.A., B. Mus.

Jake Klinkenborg began his cello career at age 6 in Lander, Wyoming. An interest in music and environmental degradation led him to Oberlin College, where he received degrees in Cello Performance and Environmental Studies. In 2015 he moved to Montréal, where he completed his graduate studies at McGill University. Klinkenborg’s teachers include Thomas Heinrich, Rebecca Murdock, Brian Manker, and Darrett Adkins. He has performed at festivals such as Ilesoniq, the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Orford, Music Masters Course Japan, and Kneisel Hall. In 2016 Klinkenborg became a fellow of the Youth Orchestra of the Americas Global Leaders Program, which resulted in performances and teaching residencies at several Chilean and Paraguayan music institutions. Klinkenborg’s clarinet trio, Tetrakis, won the McGill Chamber Music Competition in 2017, resulting in a brief exchange at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo. Klinkenborg loves performing works by living composers. Recent performances include Sean Ferguson’s Projet Miroirs for cello and electronics in venues in Montréal and Toronto, a chamber recital of music related to climate change at the SKOL Arts Center in Montréal, and a premiere of Jason Noble's Simple Geometries for cello and audio-reactive glass harp. Klinkenborg’s solo projects include a series of solo recitals performed in the dark while covered in glowing body paint.

Patrick Smith, M.A., B. Mus.

Cellist Patrick Smith is a dynamic musician at home in both Western classical and intercultural music. Smith holds a Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance from the DePaul University School of Music in Chicago, Illinois. While attaining his Master of Arts from the University of Alberta, he expanded his repertoire to include African art music and Middle Eastern music. A native of Idaho, Smith began playing cello at the age of 10. His musical education began in a successful public school music program and continued during private study with Samuel Smith. Smith went on to study with Stephen Balderston at DePaul University. He served as Principal Cellist of the DePaul Symphony Orchestra from 2008 to 2009 and performed with this and other orchestras during his time in Chicago.