SOLO
Ana Topalovic’s artistic focus is solo cello. She develops dramaturgically shaped programs that explore the full versatility of the instrument—from Baroque repertoire to contemporary music, including collaborations with composers, extended techniques, E-cello, live electronics and visual elements.
Programs
MULTICELLO
Multicello is a solo performance concept by Ana Topalovic that expands the sound and form of classical cello performance. It combines acoustic cello, five-string electric cello, live electronics and extended playing techniques. Renowned for her solo performances, Ana has appeared at venues such as Carnegie Hall and Wiener Konzerthaus and has received numerous awards. Her concerts integrate classical and contemporary repertoire, combining acoustic and electronic textures and layered sound structures.
The music is contemporary classical, blending structured and minimalist approaches with experimental and improvisational elements, drawing on folk traditions and the sounds of nature.
The programs bring together contemporary works, collaborations with composers, original pieces and selected solo cello repertoire. Through live processing and looping, multiple musical layers are created in real time, allowing the cello to function as a polyphonic and evolving instrument.
Each performance is built around a central theme and follows a narrative structure, connecting the pieces into a cohesive storytelling experience rather than a sequence of separate works. Some programs take the form of a solo recital, while others incorporate text, live-reactive visuals and performative elements. Certain versions are more structured, while others leave space for experimental approach and improvisation.
Mirabilia
In the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, mirabilia referred to rare natural phenomena, curiosities and treasures collected in cabinets of wonder — spaces suspended between science, myth and art. Inspired by this idea, Mirabiliabecomes a concert program about in-between spaces: between past and present, acoustic and electronic sound, intimacy and vastness, reality and imagination.
In a time when crisis and overstimulation often narrow our perception, Mirabilia consciously turns toward wonder. Inspired by the beauty and mysteries of nature, the act of admiration itself becomes an artistic practice — a way of escaping heaviness by illuminating what is fragile, extraordinary and alive.
At the center stands the violoncello, expanded into a “multicello”: acoustic cello, electric cello and live electronics merge into a multilayered sonic body. The electronics are not used as a technical effect but as an organic extension of the instrument — enlarging resonances, opening new spaces and revealing hidden layers of sound.
The program brings together classical compositions, arrangements and original works into a poetic sonic journey. Early music encounters contemporary sound worlds; delicate lines dissolve into dense sonic landscapes. In this way, musical in-between spaces emerge, where memory, nature, curiosity and transformation enter into dialogue.
Mirabilia invites audiences and presenters alike into a cabinet of listening wonders — a space of attention, imagination and awe.
BACHIANA - A Solo Cello Fantasy
Music by: J. S. Bach, K. Saariaho, J. Doderer, D. Rotaru, M. Ferek-Petric, J. Purgina, A. Topalovic…
Originally conceived around Ana Topalovic’s synaesthesia — her ability to perceive music through colours and shapes — and her search for hidden connections between Bach and contemporary music by female composers, Bachiana has gradually evolved into a broader celebration of the cello itself: its voice, depth and expressive possibilities across centuries.
At the heart of the program lies the unique beauty of the cello sound: warm, intimate, singing, and deeply human. Moving from the elegance and clarity of the Baroque to the rich and imaginative sound worlds of today, the program invites audiences on a musical journey through time, exploring how composers have continually rediscovered and reinvented the instrument.
Alongside works by Johann Sebastian Bach, the program places a special focus on female composers, whose music expands and enriches the cello repertoire with distinctive perspectives and expressive sound worlds. Rather than creating contrasts, Bachiana seeks dialogues — between old and new, tradition and innovation, familiarity and discovery.
The album Bachiana, released in 2022 on Hänssler Classic, was nominated for the prestigious Opus Klassik Awards in three categories: Best Solo Instrument, Newcomer, and Instrumentalist of the Year.
CELLIPHONIA
Celliphonia is a performance concept by Ana Topalovic that expands the sonic and performative language of the acoustic cello within contemporary music. The cello is treated not as a fixed instrument, but as a site of sonic exploration, with a particular focus on extended techniques, texture and the physical materiality of sound.
The project functions as a platform for collaboration with composers and sound artists, where interpretation, co-creation, and improvisation intersect. Bringing together notated works, experimental formats and open structures, Celliphonia moves fluidly between composed and improvised contexts.
A particular focus lies on supporting and presenting works by women composers and creating space for diverse artistic voices. Each iteration of Celliphonia evolves in response to its specific context, collaborators, and performance environment.
Celliphonia was premiered at the Wiener Konzerthaus in the Berio-Saal. The album Celliphonia was released by Synesthesia Records.
Awards and Grants
OPUS KLASSIK nomination in three categories: Best Solo Instrument, Newcomer and Instrumentalist Of The Year for the album “BACHIANA - A Solo Cello Fantasy”
IBLA GRAND PRIZE for solo performance
IBLA Special Mention for the interpretation of “The Book” by Peteris Vasks
Artist Work Grant by the City of Vienna for “Multicello - Solo but not Alone” project
Austrian Music Fonds Grant for the Album “BACHIANA - A Solo Cello Fantasy”
Press
“Varied and enormously multifaceted cello playing....
It is striking to note an extraordinary ability to modify not only the sound of the strings through precise positioning of the bow but also the resonances within the cello, which she uses deliberately, especially during repetitions.”
“Dialogue between present and past... Bach fans will get their money’s worth just as much as proponents of contemporary music... And all it takes is one cello.”
“ON NEW SONIC PATHS – The Austrian-Serbian cellist Ana Topalovic never settles for the conventional repertoire canon, as demonstrated by her work in various formations (from the Zadory–Topalovic Duo to the contemporary Green Thing Ensemble), as well as in her solo career. It is here that her pursuit of new directions becomes particularly audible.
Alongside international engagements and the founding of the Treffpunkt: Kunst festival, which supports local artists with a focus on Serbian migration background (since autumn 2015), she has developed a discographic project that opens up a perspective on outstanding new cello music.
Daniele Corsi’s Dark Matter (2013) ventures into analytical, almost mathematical sound worlds, framed by strikingly beautiful melodic lines. Călin Ioachimescu’s Celliphonia for Cello and Electronics reveals the full spectrum of the instrument. Topalovic also demonstrates remarkable cantabile playing in Leggiero by the renowned German-Korean composer Isang Yun. Sofia Gubaidulina’s 10 Preludes for Solo Cello (1974), long established as classics, unfold a newly intensified expressive depth in her interpretation.
Beautiful.”
“The cellist opened the program with four movements from the C major Suite for Solo Cello by Johann Sebastian Bach. From the very beginning, it became clear what an outstanding musician the Vienna-based cellist is. A soft yet powerful bow stroke, combined with a refined, even tone of great precision, were defining characteristics of the unpretentious soloist.
Through her facial expression and body language, Ana Topalovic conveyed both the composer’s intent and her own musical interpretation. The result was entirely unforced and free of exaggeration — her body simply reflected the music.”
“Exceptional and beautiful!”