Kate Speck is a cellist, recording artist, and composer from Western Massachusetts. They currently reside San Diego, performing throughout Southern California. Most recently, they composed and performed for Greta Nuñez's live dance piece and dance film "Christine & Catalina: Echoes Beneath the Surface".
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Kate has been playing cello since the age of eight, learning primarily through public school music programs. This fostered their appreciation for music teachers and music education. They also taught themself guitar, upright and electric bass, ukulele, and piano. From a young age, Kate was interested in a variety of music and performance styles including classical, pop, rock, folk, jazz, and musical theater. The exploration of multiple instrument techniques and diversity of genres has helped Kate immensely in music production, composing, and teaching.
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Kate has extensive experience with performing. Most often, you can find Kate playing for weddings and special events, both solo and with other musicians. They play for musical and opera productions multiple times a year. Credits include Cleveland Opera Theater (Opera for All Summer Concerts, La Traviata, La Bohème, Barber of Seville), Baldwin Wallace Opera (Glory Denied), Rabbit Run Theater (2021-2023 seasons), New York Musical Festival (Women of Note, How the Light Gets In), and Barrington Stage Company (Presto Change-O, World Premiere).
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Remotely, Kate works on freelance projects including cello recordings, composing, music production, and arranging. They compose original works for instruments spanning from solo cello to large ensembles to electronic music for dance and media. Check out the music tab and social media links to see audio and video examples, showcasing their recordings, compositions, and arrangements.
Kate completed their Bachelors of Music at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2017 where they studied cello performance with Astrid Schween and Edward Arron. They taught in the El Sistema and launched the music production program at Rainey Institute in Cleveland, OH. Currently, Kate works as a freelance musician and composer as well as teaches private cello lessons in San Diego, CA.