Bio & Background

Josh Aerie is an accomplished performing and recording artist, instructor, and arranger.
He received his Master of Music degree in Cello Performance from the University of Colorado in 2002, and completed his undergraduate work at Oberlin Conservatory of Music and Oberlin College, where he received both a Bachelor of Music in Cello Performance and a Bachelor of Arts with Honors in Anthropology.

Since receiving his Masters, Mr. Aerie has lived and worked in the Los Angeles area, the Washington, D.C. area, and moved to Duluth, Minnesota in the summer of 2006. He has performed with the National Philharmonic, Maryland Symphony, Fairfax Symphony, Baltimore Concert Artists, Roanoke Symphony, Opera Roanoke, National Cathedral Orchestra, Fresno Philharmonic, Riverside Philharmonic, San Bernardino Symphony, Los Angeles Debut Orchestra, and Golden State Pops. He has performed in major venues, including the Kennedy Center, Tanglewood, the Library of Congress, Strathmore Hall, and the Walt Disney Concert Hall among others. Additionally, he has performed for various dignitaries, including Vice President Dick Cheney, Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs Anthony Principi, foreign ambassadors, and members of congress.

Mr. Aerie was the cellist of the Nacht String Quartet, the University of Colorado’s Graduate Quartet from 2000 to 2002. Mentored by the Grammy-winning Takacs Quartet, the Nacht won both first prize and the audience choice award in the Bruce Ekstrand Memorial Competition in December 2001. They were then invited to be the inaugural quartet in an exchange and residency program with the Hans Eisler Conservatory in Berlin. Subsequently, the Quartet spent 8 weeks in Germany, performing in Berlin, Lichterfelde, and Bielefeld.

Mr. Aerie enjoys teaching and maintains an active studio. Instructing cellists of all ages and abilities, his students have distinguished themselves in state and regional competitions and orchestras, and in school and scholarship auditions. Mr. Aerie has conducted master classes and coached various ensembles, and he is sought after as a judge for competitions and auditions. While at Oberlin, he was Instructor of Cello in both the Conservatory’s String Preparatory Program and the Secondary Lesson Program. He also coached and conducted for the Washington D.C. Youth Orchestra Program, the American Youth Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Capital Cello Circle.

Breaking out of the “classical mold,” Mr. Aerie has played electric cello for various bands, ensembles, and solo artists. He has written string arrangements for recordings, played for film, television, and audio sessions, and performed at some of the most renowned clubs in L.A., Hollywood, Santa Monica, and Laguna Beach. Mr. Aerie can be heard on two recordings for the Vitamin Records label, the Frozen Food Section Records, and United Artists Publishing.