Chris Wild is a Chicago-based cellist, conductor, music educator and artist. As a cellist, his interest in diverse art forms has led to countless solo and chamber music performances at such venues as the National Arts Centre of Canada, The Banff Centre, Vancouver Playhouse, Aspen Music Festival, Detroit Institute of Arts, Hill Auditorium, Chicago Cultural Center, Aldeburgh Festival (England), the new music festival in Darmstadt (Germany), and broadcasts on CTV National News (Canada) and WFMT Classical Radio Chicago. Chris’ recent conducting activities include leading Columbia College Chicago’s Cadre ensemble and conducting the Pierre Monteux School Orchestra in concerts recorded for broadcast on Maine Public Radio. He is currently a cellist for ensemble dal niente, founding cellist of the string duo Wild and Wulliman and Director of Orchestras for the DeKalb public schools, where he teaches grades 6-12 orchestras and is founding Music Director of the DeKalb High School String Band.

Chris began his cello studies in Vancouver, Canada, where he won first place in the Canadian Music Competition and made his solo debut with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. He obtained bachelors and masters degrees in cello performance and music education from the University of Michigan, where his primary cello teachers were Erling Blöndal Bengtsson and Richard Aaron and he won first place in the school’s Concerto Competition. He has studied conducting and rehearsal techniques at the Pierre Monteux School for Conductors, University of Illinois Conductors Workshop, and University of Michigan with Michael Jinbo, Donald Schleicher, Louis Bergonzi, and Robert Culver. Chris is committed to a comprehensive music education that includes the development of musicianship for creative activities such as improvisation and composition. His first teaching job was as Assistant Artistic Director of the Saline Fiddlers; that experience and others have inspired him to arrange music for string ensembles from a variety of sources. Chris also has experience in other arts disciplines, working as a visual artist using oil paints on canvas, writing and producing the music theater project A Day in Chicago and contributing to numerous interdisciplinary projects.