Categories
Contemporary Austrian Iranian

SOLTANI, Kian

Photo of Kian Soltani holding a cello
Image courtesy of composer's website

Born in Bregenz, Austria, 1992

[KEE-ahn SOL-tah-nee]

  • Kian Soltani is an Austrian-Iranian cellist and composer. He was born to a family of Persian musicians and began studying the cello at just four years old.
  • Soltani was invited to join the Basel Music Academy at age 12. In 2014, he won the Anne-Sophie Mutter Foundation scholarship and completed his musical studies at the Kronberg Academy in Germany and the International Music Academy in Liechtenstein.
  • Soltani is known first and foremost as a cellist, performing with such renowned ensembles as the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Staatskapelle Berlin, Munich Philharmonic, Wiener Symphoniker, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, and Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia.
  • In 2023, Soltani was appointed to the faculty of Vienna’s University of Music and Performing Arts.1
  • For fun – Soltani’s Tiny Desk Concert

Learn More
Composer’s website

Sources

  1. “Biography,” Kian Soltani, accessed April 3, 2026, https://www.kiansoltani.com/biography.

Pieces