Photo courtesy of Jonathan West

Enjoy an evening of music in the Seattle Japanese Garden during our Cellos in the Garden performance! On June 25th we are featuring an open air performance by classical musicians on the Moon Viewing Platform. This special one-night-only performance will feature the Principal and Assistant Principal cellists of the Seattle Symphony, Efe Baltacigil and Nathan Chan performing as a cello duo.

This very special opportunity is a fundraiser for the Seattle Japanese Garden in partnership with Puget Sound Music Collaborative in advance of our July maintenance closure (July 11th-August 8th). The garden gate will open at 6:00 p.m. with the performance starting at 6:30 p.m.

Cellist Efe Baltacigil

Cellist Nathan Chan

Turkish Cellist Efe Baltacigil is the Principal Cellist of the Seattle Symphony. He studied at the Curtis Institute in Philadephia and made his concerto debuts with the Berlin Philharmonic and the Philadelphia orchestra. Sought after soloist and chamber musician Efe enjoys hiking, sailing and volley pong in his free time. Efe is delighted to return to the Seattle Japanese Garden after performing in a trio for last summer’s Garden Party fundraiser.

Cellist Nathan Chan made his musical debut at age three conducting the San Jose Chamber Orchestra. He has performed as a soloist with the San Francisco Symphony, The Royal Philharmonic, and the Albany Symphony, among others. Chan was a chosen artist for Fondation Louis Vuitton's Classe d'Excellence du Violoncelle with renowned cellist Gautier Capuçon. Nathan earned his Bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and has a growing internet presence with over 25 million views on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok (@nathanchancello). Nathan studied with Richard Aaron at The Juilliard School, where he earned his Masters of Music. Nathan recently released his first NFT, collaborating with AI Artist Lia Coleman, combining classical music with machine learning art. He is currently Assistant Principal Cello of the Seattle Symphony.

This is an outdoor event and will be held rain or shine!