Cellist Joshua Morris is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Cello Performance at the Schulich School of Music, where he previously earned a Master’s degree and a Graduate Diploma, studying with Brian Manker. He received his Bachelor’s degree from Oberlin Conservatory, where he studied with Amir Eldan.
An avid chamber musician, Morris is a co-founder of Ensemble Urbain, a Montréal-based conductorless string ensemble inaugurated in 2019 that brings its performances to spaces beyond the traditional concert hall, specializing in works by underrepresented composers. As cellist of the Milton String Quartet, he won the 2017 Fischoff National Chamber Association Grand Prize and Senior String Division Gold Medal, the 2016 McGill Chamber Music Competition, and participated in the McGill International String Quartet Academy in 2016 and 2017. Morris has also collaborated with numerous leading performers such as Jinjoo Cho, Phillip Chiu, and Axel Strauss.
Morris appeared as soloist with the McGill Symphony Orchestra in November 2017, performing Schumann’s Cello Concerto. In 2016, Morris was named winner of the Schulich School of Music’s Golden Violin Competition, and the Jeunesses Musicales’ Peter Mendell Award.
As a composer, Morris has performed his Suite for Solo Cello on numerous occasions, and his Suite for Solo Violin was featured on Oberlin Conservatory’s 2015 Dannenberg Honors Recital. He is a native of Saint Albans, Vermont.
