Torleif Thedéen is one of the most highly regarded musicians in Scandinavia. He gained international recognition in 1985 by winning three of the worlds most prestigious cello competitions.
 
Since then he has been giving concerts all over the world. Thedéen regularly plays not only with all the leading orchestras in Scandinavia, but also with some of the world’s major orchestras, – among them the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Symphony Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, and Israel Sinfonietta – under conductors like Esa-Pekka Salonen, Paavo Berglund, Neeme Järvi, Franz Welser-Möst, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Leif Segerstam, and Eri Klas.
 
Torleif Thedéen is also active as a chamber musician, and as such appears in prestigious concert venues worldwide such as Wigmore Hall in London, the Carnegie Recital Hall in New York and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. He often participates in prestigious Music Festivals, among them the Verbier Festival, Prague Spring Festival, the festival in Schleswig-Holstein, festivals in in Bordeaux, Oslo, Bath, Stavanger and Kuhmo.
 
Since 1986 Thedéen has recorded numerous CD’s for BIS, featuring standard repertoire works as well as contemporary music. His CD with the Shostakovich Cello Concertos won the Cannes Classical Award in 1995, and his recording of J.S. Bach’s Solo Suites for solo cello was highly received when it was released in 2000 (Editor’s choice in BBC Music Magazine, Nov 2001). In 2002 his recording of Dvorak’s Cello concerto was released.
 
In 05/06 he made a very successful debut with the Rotterdam Philharmonic, he has toured with soloists like Julian Rachlin, Janine Jansen to European festivals, and returned to New Zeeland, and Australia in 06/07. He also toured Scandinavia and England with the Musica Vitae chamber orchestra from Sweden in Oct 2006.
 
In 07/08 Mr. Thedéen has toured extensively worldwide with Janine Jansen & Maxim Rysanov, following their recording made by DECCA. He performed with the Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra in Nov 07.
 
08/09 he has successfully performed with London Philharmonic Orchestra in London, toured with the BBC Wales SO, and recorded for cpo with NDR Orchestra in Hannover, Germany. He performed in Musikverein in Vienna, as a soloist in Beethovens Tripple Concerto with Wiener Symphoniker, and in France with Orchestre Philharmonique de Bordeaux. In 2009 he was invited back to the Chamber Music Festival in Verbier, Switzerland.
 
09/10 included a.o.a Gala Concert in Geneva (Beethoven Triple Concerto with Vienna Symphony), as well as returns to the Stockholm Philharmonic and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, and Helsinki Philharmonic. In 10/11 he performed Dutilleux Cello Concerto with Stuttgart Philh and return to NDR Hannover, and Dortmund. The season also included Brahms Double Concerto with Janine Jansen and the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester, concerts in Birmingham (CBSO), Finland, Spain, and Chamber Music tour (Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall etc) with fellow soloists Andsnes, Hamelin, Kraggerud, Tomter, Fröst a.o.
 
In March 2011 he performed Bloch Schelomo with the ORF/RSO Orchestra in Vienna, substituting for Heinrich Schiff on short notice.
 
In 11/12 there were several concerts with Janine Jansen and Max Rysanov, including London (Wigmore Hall), Salzburg Festival, Istanbul, a.o., and concerts with pianist Roland Pöntinen, orchestra concerts in Germany, Scandinavia etc.. He participated in the Martha Argerich Chamber Festival in Lugano in June 2012, and returned to the Verbier Festival in June same year.
 
14/15 and 15/16 Torleif Thedéen returned to New Zealand and Australia, in addition to several European venues. In 2016 Thedéen was back to Stockholm and Helsinki Phil, performed with Hamburg Symphony a.o. 16/17 he returns to New Zealand and Australia for Chamber Music festivals and orchestra concerts. Chamber Music tours include returns to Verbier, Carnegie Hall, Berlin, London (Wigmore Hall) a.o. In Sept 2017 he plays Elgar in Moscow.
 
Torleif Thedéen served as Professor at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Copenhagen 1992-96. Since 1996 he is Professor at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Stockholm.
 
He plays the ex-Lynn Harrel cello by David Techler from 1711.