Biography
Acclaimed for his expressive depth and fearless playing, Greek cellist Timotheos Gavriilidis-Petrin is forging an unwavering artistic path, aiming to evoke powerful sensations through his music making. He regularly appears as a soloist and chamber musician throughout North America and Europe, most recently with star-violinist Leonidas Kavakos and the Greek Youth Symphony Orchestra on Brahms’ Double Concerto. Timotheos made his first major US solo appearance in 2016 with the Kansas City Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Robert Spano. He then gained international recognition as a prizewinner at the prestigious International Paulo Cello Competition in Finland, where he was singled out by local press for his “great and passionate soloist style” and his “interesting, original personality".
He has also appeared as a soloist with the Helsinki Philharmonic and Susanna Mälkki in the rarely performed Shostakovich 2nd Cello Concerto. Other notable solo performances include appearances with the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, the Tapiola Sinfonietta, the Israel Camerata, the NEC Philharmonia Orchestra, the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra, and the Symphony in C Orchestra.
Timotheos made his NYC debut recital at Merkin Hall together with pianist Alexia Mouza in 2025 and also released his first solo album with GENUIN Classics the same year.
In 2017, he was named Artist-in-Residence at 'Performance Today', the most listened-to classical music radio program in the US. Several of his recordings were broadcast and received with great success throughout that year.
In 2023, Timotheos was named Artistic Director of the Samos Young Artist Festival, a position which he holds till now. As the festival's director, he founded the Young Composer in Residence program, an initiative aiming to commission new original compositions and to have them premiered at the festival.
He is a founding member of Trio Zimbalist, a piano trio of Curtis Institute alumni which - through a commitment to artistic excellence - carries on the storied legacy of legendary violinist and Curtis director Efrem Zimbalist. Trio Zimbalist made their European debut in summer 2021 and continues touring in both Europe and North America. Their first album was released under the Curtis Studio Label with raving reviews by the Gramophone Magazine.
Since 2022, he has been a member of the ApollΩn Ensemble, a chamber music group founded by Leonidas Kavakos. With this ensemble he frequently tours in both Europe and Asia performing a large array of the chamber music repertoire. They recently released their album with Sony Classical.
Timotheos has collaborated on stage with important musical figures such as violinists Leonidas Kavakos, Roman Simovic, Miriam Fried, Pamela Frank, violists Roberto Diaz and Kim Kashkashian, cellist Peter Wiley and pianists Roman Rabinovich and Jonathan Biss. He has participated at the Marlboro Music Festival, Chamberfest Cleveland, Ravinia’s Steans Music Institute, Athens Epidaurus Festival among others.
He studied at the Curtis Institute of Music with Peter Wiley and Carter Brey and later with Laurence Lesser at the New England Conservatory. He plays on a Gennaro Gagliano cello (Napoli ca.1750), a generous loan by an anonymous member of the Stretton Society.
His future performances include solo engagements with the Chamber Orchestra Philadelphia, the Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra, the Sinfonia Varsovia and chamber music performances at Wigmore Hall, the Saint Martin in the Fields series, the Troja Festival, Tivoli Festival Copenhagen.