Photo: Tina Axelsson

Cecilia Zilliacus’ musical life has been shaped by curiosity, listening and a desire to meet others through music. From an early age, collaboration and exchange have been as important to her as technical mastery, and her career has grown from a belief that music gains meaning when it is shared – between musicians, composers and audiences.

“I want to work in contexts where each musician brings their own distinctiveness, and where the result becomes more than the sum of its parts.”

This idea has followed her throughout her artistic journey. Equally drawn to the established repertoire and to music that is newly written, unfamiliar or overlooked, Cecilia Zilliacus moves freely between centuries, styles and genres. She has long been committed to working closely with composers, and collaboration with living composers has been a natural part of her life as a musician since her student years. Many composers have written works specifically for her and for the ensembles she is part of – encounters that continue to shape her artistic voice.

Her playing is often described as honest, direct and grounded, qualities that stem from a deep engagement with the music itself rather than from any desire to impress. Whether performing a classical concerto, chamber music or projects that cross stylistic boundaries, communication remains central: listening, responding and creating something together in the moment.

As a violin soloist, Cecilia Zilliacus performs a repertoire that ranges from the core violin repertoire to newly written works and world premieres, reflecting her curiosity for both the well-known and the unfamiliar. She has appeared with most Swedish symphony orchestras as well as with orchestras across the Nordic countries and Europe, including BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra and the Zagreb Philharmonic. She has collaborated with conductors such as Susanna Mälkki, Ania Bihlmaier, Ruth Reinhardt, Ville Matvejeff, Fredrik Burstedt, Daniel Harding, Andrey Boreyko, Anna-Maria Helsing, Okko Kamu, Kristiina Poska and Joseph Swensen, among others.

Chamber music has always been a home ground. Over the years, she has collaborated with artists including Carolin Widmann, Olli Mustonen, Andreas Brantelid, Peter Friis-Johansson, Janne Thomsen, Bengt Forsberg, Håvard Gimse, Philippe Graffin, Christian Ihle Hadland, Svante Henryson, Paavali Jumppanen, Jakob Koranyi, Roland Pöntinen, Christoffer Sundqvist, Torleif Thedéen, Oliver Triendl and Lena Willemark. She was a founding and driving force of the Swedish string trio ZilliacusPerssonRaitinen (1999–2018) and is a member of the Zilliacus Quartet, today recognised as one of Sweden’s leading chamber music ensembles.

Photo: Tina Axelsson

Recording has been another important means of exploration. Cecilia Zilliacus has recorded both central violin concertos and newly written works, including performances of the violin concertos by Brahms and Nielsen as well as world premiere recordings by composers such as Anders Nilsson, Ylva Skog and Fredrik Hedelin. Her recordings have received wide critical acclaim and several Swedish Grammis Awards, most recently in 2024 for a recording with the Zilliacus Quartet featuring music by Grieg, Maier and Röntgen.

"As it should be, with a real soloist, this was indeed an artistic statement and presentation, rather than merely a technical achievement."

- Lars Hedblad in the Swedish daily Svenska Dagbladet 30 May 2010, on Stravinsky’s Violin Concerto, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, conductor Susanna Mälkki, Stockholm Concert Hall.

Alongside performing, Cecilia Zilliacus has developed a strong commitment to artistic leadership. She is the artistic director of the chamber music series Äntligen måndag at the Stockholm Concert Hall (since 2007) and of the Katrina Chamber Music Festival on Åland (since 2015). From 2018 to 2022 she also served as artistic director of the Korsholm Music Festival in Vaasa, Finland. Her approach to leadership is open and collaborative, with a focus on creating spaces where artistic ideas can grow organically and where musicians feel invited to contribute their full creative selves.

Teaching and mentoring are natural extensions of her artistic work. Cecilia Zilliacus is Professor of Violin at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, and for many years she also taught at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm. She regularly gives masterclasses in Sweden, Finland and internationally. Passing on knowledge, experience and curiosity to the next generation is something she regards not as an obligation, but as a privilege.

She studied in Stockholm and Cologne and is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. Her international career began in 1997 with the Soloist Prize of the Royal Swedish Academy of Music and first prize at the Nordic Soloist Biennial in Trondheim. She was Artist in Residence at Swedish Radio in 1997–98 and a Rising Star of the European concert halls network in 2001–02, performing at major venues including Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Kölner Philharmonie and Konzerthaus Wien.

Cecilia Zilliacus plays a Nicola Gagliano violin, generously on loan from the Järnåker Foundation.