Jacqueline Ultan is a singularly creative cellist, composer and improvisor and has taught cello at MacPhail since 2000.
With more than 20 years’ experience, she teaches according to the needs of each individual student. Serious, focused and detail oriented, Jacqueline is also flexible and laid back. She stresses good physical form and relaxation and enjoys teaching many styles of music. She has also taught at Minneapolis Community and Technical College, West Bank School of Music, and Yale University.
Jacqueline’s unique versatility is reflected in the diversity of her artistic collaborations: urban groove trio Saltee; drum/cello quartet Purple Orange; Persion fusion trio Mirrorlands; pop band The Starfolk; improvising collective iNMiGRATiON; flute/cello duo J2J; world music trio Ottie The Mink and The Beatles tribute band The Shabby Road Orchestra. In demand locally and nationally, Ultan has recorded and collaborated extensively with theater, pop, rock and new music artists, including: Ondara, Kill The Vultures, Roma di Luna, The Jayhawks, Chan Poling, Dan Wilson, E. Carlos Nakai, Huun Hur Tu, The Jorgensens, and Kevin Kling.
She has received several awards and commissions including a McKnight Performing Artist Fellowship; MacPhail Artist & Commissioning Grants; MRAC’s Next Step Grant and a State Arts Board Arts Tour MN grant. Ultan co-composed music for and participated in TED Talks Conferences in Minneapolis and L.A., and in June 2019, co-wrote a duo cello score for Theater Latte Da’s production of ‘To Let Go And Fall’, a play by Harrison Rivers. In October 2019, Ultan participated in The Jazz In the City Festival in Salzburg, Austria where she collaborated with Volker Goetz (composer/trumpet) and dance artist/choreographer Rosy Simas as well as Berlin based singer/composer Almut Kuhne, cellist Chris Dahlgren and contemporary dance artist Nayana Keshava Bhat.
Jacqueline holds a Masters Degree in Performance from Yale University.
Favorite non-musical hobby: My beautiful puppy Kahlo gets me out everyday for walks and playtime. My kitties Zigi and Pearl are endlessly loving and when I’m not tending the animals, I also love gardening…especially in July when I pick delicious berries from my 3 blueberry bushes!
