Paul Wiancko has led an exceptionally multi-faceted musical life as a cellist, composer, and collaborator.

While earning cello performance degrees at the University of Southern California and the Colburn School with Ronald Leonard, Paul won top prizes at several international cello competitions which led him, most notably, to Poland to perform the Lutoslawski Cello Concerto with the Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and to Brazil where he performed the Shostakovich Concerto with the Bahia Symphony at the Teatro Nacional.

Leading a double life, Paul took advantage of his time in Los Angeles by converting his dorm room into a production studio. There, he created arrangements and recorded strings for bands such as Yellowcard and Veruca Salt, and worked with the producers of numerous other artists including Pennywise, U2, and Pearl Jam. Paul's productions, which range from experimental orchestral arrangements to gospel funk tunes, can be heard on numerous albums, commercials and films. Ever the versatile musician and improviser, Paul has toured and performed extensively with Chick Corea, while working closely with him on arrangements. Paul appears on his album Continents, as well as Hot House, which won a 2013 Grammy. He has also recorded with Grammy-winner Joe Cocker, and appeared with jazz greats Etta James at the Hollywood Bowl and Stanley Clarke at the Montreal Jazz Festival.

Paul spent many summers nurturing his love for chamber music at the Aspen, Perlman, Olympic, and Marlboro Music Festivals, where he performed with members of the Guarneri, Juilliard, and Ysaye Quartets. He has also had the pleasure of performing with Midori, Yo-Yo Ma, Peter Wiley and Richard Goode, among many others. After moving to New York in 2009, Paul joined the award-winning Harlem String Quartet, with whom he spent 3 years performing and teaching extensively throughout the US, Europe, South America, and Africa. Paul currently writes and performs as a member of the electro-acoustic chamber ensemble Bright Wave, Bird's Eye Trio, and the Colonials, and has toured regularly with the East Coast Chamber Orchestra (ECCO) and American Contemporary Music Ensemble (ACME).

As a composer, one of Paul's first large-scale compositions was a highly virtuosic concerto for cello, orchestra, and electronics. Entitled "Tales From Bent City," the piece blends Paul's passion for hip-hop and improvisation with his love of the great 19th century late-romantic composers, and its New York premiere was hailed by Sequenza21 as "surprising, fun, fresh, and innovative." Paul has composed works for the Grammy-winning Parker Quartet, Met soprano Susanna Phillips, cellist Judith Serkin, violist Ayane Kozasa, yMusic, Bargemusic, and many others, and has been the composer-in-residence at the Twickenham, Newburyport, and Methow Valley Chamber Music Festivals. Paul recently completed composing the score for the new prison-drama feature film Heartlock, as well as a new Mars-exploration-based work for solo piano commissioned by scientist and NASA project leader Dr. Peter Smith. He was Caramoor's commissioned composer for the summer of 2016.

Paul plays on a 2010 Mario Miralles violoncello. He currently resides in Brooklyn, New York, and spends his spare time woodworking, fly-fishing, and practicing guitar, bass, violin, harmonica, berimbau, shamisen and theremin. [download bio]

Chick Corea at the Blue Note

Solo recital in Zipper Hall

EL VY on the Late Show with Colbert

Dawn of Midi at Ecstatic Music Festival

Terry Riley premiere at National Sawdust

Lutoslawski Concerto with Polish Radio Symphony

Mark Morris Dance Group

New York

On tour with Chick Corea & Gary Burton

Los Angeles