CelloCello! will be performing a program of little known cello duos, ranging from the Baroque composers Vivaldi and Barriere and the Classical/Romantic composers Kummer and Dotzauer to the more Modern composer Gliere and beyond. Ruthie Wenger and Sarah Walder's love and command of the sonorous cello, combined with their passion and enthusiasm for classical music, makes this program unique.

Ruthie and Sarah perform with traditional ensembles in Arizona and elsewhere. They also actively pursue alternatives to the traditional classical music format. Ruthie is the co-founder of CollabX, an organization dedicated to inter-disciplinary artistic performance. CollabX most recently produced an event at the Tempe History Museum involving a mix of classical and jazz music, African drums, puppetry, live poetry reading, storytelling, and discussion led by an ASU professor of music. Sarah is the founder of The AZ&NLproject, a street project designed to further communication about the arts, integrate classical musical into peoples’ everyday lives, and make classical music fun. Her solo program, Cello Trip, a combination of classical compositions and her own compositions for cello with loop station, is structured to make cello music accessible to all.

Both women are driven by a passion for bringing classical music into people’s lives in new and exciting ways as both performers and teachers, and both are creative and willing to experiment in a profession where it is generally expected that one conform.