Michael Unterman is the latest addition to A Far Cry. Although he has been playing with the group regularly as a guest, he has been a full Crier for only three weeks! Michael says, “I can’t tell you how excited I am to be the latest addition to the A Far Cry crew. The experience of playing with these guys has everything I could possibly hope for: inspired performances of great music with folks I’m proud to call my friends.”
Michael sort of chose the cello without knowing it. When he was a wee young thing back in Vancouver, BC, he would discretely sneak out of his violin class to the cello class next door. So his parents took the hint and signed him up with his first teacher, Judy Fraser, who he ended up staying with for the next 12 years, and who taught him not just to play the cello, but how to approach music with integrity and love. Michael is currently in the second year of a Master’s program at NEC, which was preceded by a year in Barcelona, Spain, and four years at NEC. He is grateful to his teachers, Laurence Lesser, Lluis Claret and Natasha Brofsky, who have consistently challenged him, expanded his mind and have been nothing but inspiring and supportive. Michael has gotten into the new music thing, mostly with Steve Drury and his groups (nec) Shivaree and the Callithumpian Consort, and he has also gotten into the old music thing, with Robert Mealy and Phoebe Carrai at the Harvard Baroque Chamber Orchestra. Michael is also interested in a great many things outside of performing music. Thanks to his home country, he grew up playing ice hockey; in fact, his original life goal as a kid was to play in the NHL and do music festivals in the “off-season.” His current obsession is cooking, and he has been extremely fortunate to have travelled to many places around the world, including Ecuador and the Galapagos, Argentina, Antarctica, the other Arctic, Egypt, and Israel.
Michael needs a new press photo, quite badly.
