Stjepan Hauser

Hauser was born in Pula, Croatia, into a musical family, where he began his musical education.[1] His mother plays percussion. His sister is a journalist in Pula.

Hauser finished secondary school in Rijeka. He studied in Zagreb but completed his undergraduate studies with Natalia Pavlutskaya at Trinity College of Music (now Trinity Laban) London. He completed his postgraduate studies with Ralph Kirshbaum as a Dorothy Stone Scholar at RNCM in Manchester and with Bernard Greenhouse in USA.[2]

Hauser has performed in more than 40 countries including successful debuts in Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Southbank Centre and many more.[3][4]

In October 2006, Hauser was the only cellist chosen to perform at the gala at Palazzo Vecchio in Florence for the late Mstislav Rostropovich.[5][6] Following the success of this appearance, Stjepan has been invited to perform at the most prestigious festivals in Europe. At the International Holland Music Sessions 2009, he was chosen to participate in the "New Masters on Tour" concert series, presenting young artists in prestigious concert venues all over the continent.[7]

In December 2007, Hauser played the Kol Nidre with the Metropolitan Sinfonia at a Gala Tribute Concert dedicated to Mstislav Rostropovich.[8]

Subsequently, Hauser went on to perform and record as a solo artist including his recording of British composer Christopher Ball's First Concerto for Cello, written by the composer specifically for him. The album, Christopher Ball: Music for Cello, was recorded at the first live performance of the concerto in 2010, and features former Greenwich Trio member, Yoko Misumi, on piano.

On 11 June 2009, Hauser launched his channel on YouTube, which has since reached over 270 million views as of May 2020.[9] In January 2011, Hauser, along with friend and fellow cellist Luka Šulić, performed a cover of Michael Jackson's "Smooth Criminal" which was played solely on cello. In just a few days, the music video for this cover became a YouTube sensation.[10][11][12]

The album Hauser Classic was released on 7 February 2020, in which he plays alongside the London Symphony Orchestra. The album was produced by multi-award-winning record producer Nick Patrick.[13]

During the COVID-19 quarantine, unable to tour in support of his solo album, Hauser released three performances via live streaming. The first, Hauser: Alone Together, released on 27 April 2020 was performed at the Arena Pula, in Stjepan's hometown of Pula, Croatia, on the Istrian peninsula. The second, also titled Hauser: Alone Together, was performed at Krka National Park, at the Krka Waterfalls in central Croatia. The second video was released on 15 June 2020, to celebrate the artist's 34th birthday. The third, again titled Hauser: Alone Together, was recorded at Fort Lovrijenac in Dubrovnik, Croatia, recognisable to many fans from the HBO series, Game Of Thrones. A special 2 disc edition of Hauser Classic is scheduled for October 2020 release. It includes a DVD of the three Hauser: Alone Together videos.

The album Hauser plays Morricone is set to premiere on YouTube on 27 October 2020.[14]

Hauser performs many of his pieces barefoot.

Hauser has worked with the most revered cellists in the world such as Mstislav Rostropovich, Bernard Greenhouse, Heinrich Schiff, Frans Helmerson, Arto Noras, Ralph Kirshbaum, Valter Despalj, Philippe Muller, Thomas Demenga, Young-Chang Cho, Reinhard Latzko, Karine Georgian, Roel Dieltiens, and Alexander Ivashkin, to mention a few.

In early 2011, Hauser recorded an album with fellow Croatian Damir Urban. The album, the self-titled Urban and Hauser, was released in the summer of 2011. Also in the spring of 2011, he recorded an album with Croatian pop star Oliver Dragojević. The album, Noć nek' tiho svira, was released in October 2011. Also in 2011, they performed together in Pula. That fall, along with fellow 2CELLOS member Luka Šulić, he began touring as a member of the Elton John band. Since then, he has performed with the band hundreds of times, on tour all around the world, and in Las Vegas, Nevada, in the Million Dollar Piano concert performance at the Coliseum at Caesar's Palace. In November 2011, he released another classical album: Brahms, Beethoven & Bruch for Clarinet, Cello & Piano, again with Ms. Misumi, and clarinettist Leslie Craven.

In 2018 and 2019, Hauser released a series of videos with Russian-American pianist Lola Astanova on social media.

• 
  Ribbon of an Order of Danica Hrvatska with the face of Marko Marulić for a special contribution to the culture and promotion of Croatia in the world.

Hauser is laureate of international competitions and awards such as the PLG Young Artists Auditions 2009, the J & A Beare Solo Bach Competition 2009, NYOS Staffa Award 2009, the Philharmonia Orchestra – Martin Musical Scholarship Fund 2009 and 2008, the Eastbourne Symphony Orchestra Young Soloist Competition 2009 and 2007, the Tunbridge Wells International Young Concert Artists Competition 2008 and 2006, the Computers in Personnel International Concerto Competition 2008, the Frankopan Fund Award 2006, and the MBF Music Education Award 2006 and 2005. He has also won international cello competitions and awards such as the Adam International Cello Festival and Competition in New Zealand 2009, and the VTB Capital Prize for Young Cellists 2009. Altogether, Stjepan collected a total of 21 first prizes at national and international competitions and, as a consequence, he was invited to perform twice on Gala concerts for HRH Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace and St. James's Palace.

In May 2012, Hauser won four Porin awards, two with Luka Šulić (2Cellos), and the other two for his collaboration with Damir Urban on their album Urban & Hauser.[19]

Hauser subsequently won an additional Porin award, for Best Video Release, along with Luka Šulić (2CELLOS) and Dušan Kranjc (drummer) for their Arena Zagreb DVD.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Stjepan Hauser.

• Stjepan Hauser discography at Discogs
• Official Hauser website
• Official 2CELLOS website
• Stjepan Hauser at IMDb