Introduction

Jeffrey Noel Lastrapes is an active soloist, chamber musician, and teacher who has performed and taught throughout Europe, Asia, South America, and every region of the United States.

As a soloist, he has appeared with numerous orchestras, including the Baton Rouge Symphony, Abilene Philharmonic, the National Symphony of Honduras, and the Tahoe Symphony. He has also participated in major summer festivals around the world, including the Evian Festival, Hot Springs Music Festival, Peninsula Music Festival, Bay View Music Festival, the Bellingham Festival, and twice at the Gregor Piatigorsky Seminar at the University of Southern California.

Recently, Mr. Lastrapes recorded a video production of the Complete Bach Suites for Solo Cello. He frequently performs the complete Bach Suites in recital throughout the United States, Asia, South America, and Europe. His performances and print edition of the Complete Bach Suites are the culmination of more than three decades of research, practice, and performance.

He has been honored with both competition prizes and academic awards. In 1991, Mr. Lastrapes won two of the four major prizes at the Dr. Luis Sigall International Cello Competition. More recently, he was named the 2025 Phyllis Young Texas Studio Teacher of the Year by TexASTA.

Mr. Lastrapes holds degrees from The Curtis Institute of Music and The Juilliard School, where he studied with Orlando Cole and Harvey Shapiro, respectively. He coached chamber music with Felix Galimir, Karen Tuttle, Jeffrey Solow, and many others. He has recorded for New World Records and Centaur Records.

In 2009, Mr. Lastrapes made his New York debut at Merkin Hall to critical acclaim.

“An excellent cellist with consummate technical mastery, Lastrapes is a seasoned performer whose strong, outgoing personality lets him shape the music on a big canvas with bold colors and contours.”
— Edith Eisler, New York Concert Review

Beginning in Fall 2026, he will assume his role as Director of Academy Strings and Professor of Cello at the Cleveland Institute of Music, following his tenure on the faculty of Texas Tech University, where he has served since 2008. He has also been a member of the cello and chamber music faculty at Interlochen Arts Camp since 1996.

He is the co-founder of two organizations: the Montenegro Cello Festival and Course (2018–2021) and Caerus Ensemble, a chamber music outreach organization he founded with his wife, flutist Susanna Self (2013–2023).

Mr. Lastrapes performs on a Francesco Ruggieri cello dated 1684 and a Paul Schuback cello dated 1987.

 

Jeffrey Noel Lastrapes is accepting students for Fall 2026  

Expedited application process Fast-Track Auditions with Rolling Admissions Decisions 

Guaranteed minimum Conservatory scholarship awards of $30,000 

Immediate Provisional Scholarship Offers Within 24 Hours of Audition 

 Apply Now!