Truls Mørk

Truls Mørk (born Bergen, Norway, 25 April 1961) is a Norwegian cellist.
Mørk’s parents were both professional musicians. His mother began teaching him the piano when he was seven. He also played the violin, but soon changed to the cello, which his father taught him.
When he was 17 Mørk studied with Frans Helmerson, then Heinrich Schiff and the Russian cellist Natalia Schakowskaya.
Mørk won many prizes for his cello playing. In 1982 he became the first Scandinavian musician to reach the finals of the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow and won 6th Prize. In 1989 he started giving concerts in many countries in Europe, then in 1994 the United States with the Oslo Philharmonic, including debuts at Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center.
He has won prizes for his recordings, especially of Bach's Suites for Solo Cello. He loves chamber music and he started the International Chamber Music Festival of Stavanger. 
Mørk is a Professor at the Norwegian Academy of Music, Oslo.
Mørk played a cello made by Domenico Montagnana in Venice in 1723 for more than 30 years. The cello’s scroll (the bit at the top) was made by Stradivarius. A Norwegian bank loaned it to him. The instrument was recently bought by the Dkfm. Angelika Prokopp Privatstiftung, which loans it to cellist Harriet Krigjh