Mark Rudoff

About Mark

Mark Rudoff demonstrates extraordinary versatility as a teacher, performer, conductor, and scholar. Students in his studio share in an eclectic pedagogy, with influences ranging from legal discourse to sports, liberally spiced with passion and humor. In 2024 he retired as Associate Professor Emeritus at The Ohio State University, where he was recipient of the Ronald and Deborah Ratner Distinguished Teaching Award in Arts and Humanities. Previously he taught cello, chamber music and orchestra at Brandon University, and served as principal cello of the Calgary Philharmonic and Saskatoon Symphony Orchestras. Applauded by critics as "an exceptionally gifted cellist" and “charismatic performer,” Rudoff has been invited guest artist with the Canadian Chamber Choir and at the Winnipeg Symphony's Centara New Music Festival, Music from Salem, Odyssey Chamber Music, New Music North, and the Grand Teton Music Festival. His articles have appeared in American String Teacher and Strings, and he has presented at national conferences of the College Music Society and the American String Teachers Association. He remains active performing with Janus String Quartet and the Galileo Trio, conducting the Cincinnati Community Orchestra, and teaching cello at Columbus Academy and in his private studio.

Mark Rudoff earned B.M. and M.M. degrees from The Juilliard School, graduating with the Edward Steuermann Prize. He studied there with Harvey Shapiro, Lynn Harrell, Lorne Munroe, and Joel Krosnick, and was appointed teaching assistant to the Juilliard Quartet. He later held a residency at The Banff Centre for the Arts, pursuing advanced studies with artists including Paul Tortelier, Anner Bylsma, Wieland Kuijken, Siegfried Palm, and Witold Lutoslawski. He also holds a J.D. from the University of Saskatchewan and enjoys the odd distinction of having published an article about music in the Alberta Law Review, and one with a legal slant in American String Teacher.

A core principle of pedagogy: teach what a student needs to learn, not what you happen to be able to teach. I love the challenge of meeting a student where they are and working out the ideas (practice strategy, mechanics tweak, musical insight, any or all of the above) that can launch them into productive, inspired, independent work. Especially at Interlochen, where I get brilliant, motivated musicians with a timeline of days and weeks (not years and months), so getting them solid answers to gnarly questions makes all the difference for a positive camp summer.