One of today's most sought-after cellists, Christian Poltéra was born in Zurich. He was taught by extraordinary teachers such as Boris Pergamenschikow and Heinrich Schiff in Salzburg and Vienna. As a soloist, he frequently plays with the world's great orchestras, such as the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, Orchestre de Paris, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Europe, having worked under conductors such as Bernard Haitink, Riccardo Chailly, Christoph von Dohnanyi, Andris Nelsons and Sir John Eliot Gardiner, among others. He also devotes himself intensively to chamber music, in partnership with musicians such as Gidon Kremer, Christian Tetzlaff, Leif Ove Andsnes, Mitsuko Uchida, Lars Vogt, Kathryn Stott, Esther Hoppe and Ronald Brautigam, and with the Auryn and Zehetmair Quartets. Together with violinist Frank Peter Zimmermann and viola player Antoine Tamestit, Christian Poltéra founded and is part of the famous Zimmermann Trio, which performs in the most prestigious concert halls and festivals throughout Europe. In 2004, he received the Borletti-Buitoni Prize and was selected as one of the New Generation Artists, a BBC Radio 3 project. He is a regular guest at the most prestigious festivals - such as Salzburg, Lucerne, Berlin, Edinburgh and Vienna - and made his debut at the BBC Proms in 2007. Christian Poltéra's discography, acclaimed by the international press, reflects his wide and varied repertoire, including concertos by Dvořák, Dutilleux, Lutoslawski, Walton, Hindemith and Barber, as well as chamber music by Prokofiev, Fauré, Beethoven and Schubert. Christian Poltéra is Professor of Cello at the University of Lucerne. He plays with the famous Stradivarius "Mara" cello from 1711.