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For cellist and filmmaker Nicholas Canellakis, making humorous sketches for the internet wasn’t just some hack to get more followers on social media, but a way to live a courageous, artistic life.
“I feel emboldened by the times we live in now. I think there’s an appetite. It’s certainly more acceptable to be a polymath, to have an array of interests and passion, and to be willing to show that,” Canellakis says.
Canellakis, who performs internationally as a soloist and chamber musician, trained at the New England Conservatory and Curtis Institute of Music. Now, he’s on faculty at Curtis, is artistic director of Chamber Music Sedona, and also performs with organizations like the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, Chamber Music Society of Palm Beach, and the Friends of Chamber Music in Kansas City.
“You have to put in your time, because no one wants to see a classical music content creator that actually doesn’t have the goods,” he says.
But when he turned 30, he realized an aspect of his artistic life was unfulfilled, and started taking acting classes and pursuing his interest in filmmaking.
“It was lifechanging,” Canellakis says. “It opened up my whole world.”
Not only did he meet his wife during the process (Arabella Oz, a frequent presence in his content), but what he learned about performance and communication informed his growth as a musician.
“I feel emboldened to be a lot less filtered about my artistic identity and what kind of content I want to put out in the world.”
Canellakis began putting these two passions together around 2011, when he started the YouTube series “Conversations with Nick Canellakis,” joined by his friend and duo partner, pianist/composer Michael Stephen Brown. In these “Between Two Ferns”-style interviews, Canellakis deliberately bores, bothers and backhand compliments classical music luminaries like Itzhak Perlman, Leon Fleisher, and Yo-Yo Ma’s “accompanist” (Emanuel Ax).
”I think Michael has the same idea about wanting to have a big life as an artist, and be courageous,” says Canellakis. “I think the only reason I didn’t do more of this in the past was fear.”
But from those early forays into comedic content, he’s developed a high quality, pitch perfect style that exaggerates the inner demons of a classical music-centered life.
“The ideas come from every facet of what I do,” Canellakis says.
“For me it’s always about the world of classical music and particularly the neurotic life of the musicians. That’s been rich for me to mine,” he says. “Instagram can suffer from being overly curated, trying to make yourself look perfect—and for musicians—sound perfect. I was interested in getting into the darker recesses of the musician mind and that really just seemed to resonate with people.”
While he still makes the rent via his classical music career, the reaction to his filmmaking has been only positive, with over 111,000 followers and millions of views. His 2019 short film “Thin Walls” has earned multiple awards and nominations.
“Deep down, I knew I wanted this to be a part of my life, it just took many, many years to figure out how I was going to do that,” Canellakis says. “It’s about living that polymath life. It’s about addition, not subtraction.”
Cellist Nick Canellakis (and pianist Michael Stephen Brown) performs in Kansas City with the Friends of Chamber Music for their 50th season finale, “Carnival of the Animals and Other Delights,” 3 p.m. May 3, 2026 at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. The “other delights” include a world premiere by Brown.
Curious about the world of classical music humorists? Enjoy this list of legacy comics and present-day creators. Share your favorites by emailing us at classical@classicalkc.org!
- Victor Borge (1909-2000): the grandfather of classical music comedy, Borge was a child prodigy pianist and immigrant who performed skits on stage, radio, and television, opening the way for multimedia virtuoso musician/comedians.
- Gerard Hoffnung (1925-1959): cartoonist and amateur tubist, mastermind behind the Hoffnung Music Festivals, which featured caricatures of symphonic music and performances, for example, on garden hose and vacuums.
- P.D.Q. Bach: supposedly the “only forgotten son” of Johann Sebastian Bach, this persona was created by composer/conductor Peter Schikele (1935-2024).
- Isabel Hagen: violist, stand-up comedian, filmmaker, star of “On a String” and “Isabel Hagan to the Bitter End.”
- Igudesman & Joo: violin and piano duo who pair Mozart with mayhem. Igudesman also teamed up with actor John Malkovich with the stage show “The Music Critic,” which appears to be a sort of live action version of the 1953 collection “The Lexicon of Musical Invective,” by Nicolas Slominsky. Here’s the duo on “Conversations with Nick Canellakis.”
- Musicians of the Kansas City Symphony: musician-run account featuring behind-the-scenes antics.
