You’ve made a name for yourself as an interpreter of new music – what first attracted you to this area? Was it always something you were interested in? 

Actually, not really. I was always immersed in the classical canon as a student, with the mindset being that this was the rep a cellist was supposed to play and that I would become a concerto soloist or an orchestra member or play in a chamber group someday. I always played some new music, but was not exposed to enough of it to really get inspired until I heard the music that Bang on a Can was playing. Suddenly my perception of what new music could be changed. The idea that I could be amplified, use effects and processing, play grooves, improvise … and rock out … that got my juices flowing and the flood gates opened. Not to mention I was surrounded by some of the most inspiring and amazing musicians in the field, within the Bang on a Can All-Stars, and working with some of the greatest living composers of today. How could I not fall in love?

Playing new music allowed me to put my own imprint on it, as opposed...