Ekke Rainer Arndt

Ekke Rainer Arndt was born on September 15, 2004. He began studying the cello at the age of six. He is currently studying at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre under Professor Henry-David Varema. In 2023, he graduated from the first class of the Tallinn School of Music and Ballet (MUBA) with top marks in his specialty, where he studied under Mart Laas. Starting from the 2024/25 season, Ekke Rainer works as a cellist in the Estonian National Opera Orchestra.

In national competitions in Estonia, Ekke Rainer Arndt has won first prize three times and second prize once in his age category at the “Best Young Instrumentalist” competition. At the Estonian Competition-Festival for Young String Players, he has been awarded the title of laureate in the last three editions (2023, 2021, and 2018).

In international competitions, he received second prize in his age group at the 9th Augusts Dombrovskis Competition in Riga, Latvia, in 2017, along with a special prize for the best performance of a Latvian piece. In the same year, he won second prize and the prize for best performance of a virtuoso piece in his age group at the “Young Musician” competition in Tartu, Estonia.

Orchestral experience includes performances with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Pärnu City Orchestra, Kristjan Järvi Ensemble, Nordic Symphony Orchestra, Kristjan Järvi’s film music recording projects at Estonian Radio studios, Järvi Academy Youth Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Young (Amsterdam 2019, conductor Pablo Heras-Casado), and ESYO (Italy, 2018 and 2019). A special highlight was his participation in the Bridge Festival in Scotland (April 17–24, 2022) as part of an eight-member ensemble from the Pille Lill Music Fund (PLMF) and as a member of the festival orchestra.

Since the age of nine, Ekke Rainer Arndt has performed multiple times as a soloist with orchestras, including with the Tallinn School of Music and Ballet Symphony Orchestra in 2023 and the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra in 2022. He has extensive experience in ensemble playing and has taken part in numerous masterclasses.