Readers of the PCT Communicator are aware that the “world’s foremost hiking cellist” is on the trail again this summer. On his second thru-hike, Mark Votapek plans to play around 30 concerts. That’s one on nearly every “zero day”.
Last weekend, PCTA staff Angie Williamson and Shari Hansen had the pleasure of attending his 12th concert. Mark plays tonight, July 10th, in Sierra City. See his full concert schedule here.
A little more about Mark and his PCT Cello Tour:
Already established as an active solo, chamber music, orchestral and teaching cellist, Mark Votapek is now becoming quite possibly the world’s foremost hiking cellist.
Votapek’s previous positions as Principal Cello of the major orchestras of Honolulu, Oregon, and Sacramento, and as Associate Principal Cello of the Saint Louis Symphony introduced him to regions with some of the finest natural lands in the United States. He performed with Sarah Chang at Aspen and climbed Mt. Elbert the following day. He was a regular member of the Ebb and Flow Arts new music ensemble and Pacific Concert Artists International while completing over a hundred hikes on the Hawaiian Islands. He maintains annual appearances at the Mammoth Lakes Music Festival and on top of its nearby California Fourteeners and John Muir Trail.
His concerts have been aired numerous times on Hawaii Public Radio and Arizona Public Radio, and his concerto performance of Schelomo was featured on NPR’s Performance Today. His climbs of Mt. Rainier and Gannet Peak have not made it onto radio yet, mostly due to loud breathing noises.
Currently Votapek is the cello professor and string chamber music coordinator at the University of Arizona School of Music. They have kindly, if not very enthusiastically, extended his 2013 summer leave so that he can attempt his second complete hike of the 2600-mile Pacific Crest Trail, this time as a cello hiking concert tour, performing in trail towns and locations along the way. When the summer tour is completed, a much thinner Mark Votapek will return to his position at University of Arizona and his regular concert schedule.
Would you like to host a show? Mark writes:
If you are near the trail and would like to book a show, it’s never too late…until I’ve hiked past you. Email me at [email protected]