‘Classical music will prosper when it lives within other genres’ – Cellist Abel Selaocoe

For Abel Selaocoe, the cello was a route out of the townships of South Africa – where he walked 9 miles to music school – before winning a place at the prestigious Royal Northern College of Music.

Now, the musician works towards combining African and classical music on a world stage – often improvising, often using his own voice as an instrument.

We sent our own cellist, Ciaran Jenkins, to speak to him about his childhood and what it means to be a black artist in the predominantly white world of classical music.