Nick Byrne
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Biography
Nick Byrne was born in Liverpool into a large musical family. He took up the cello aged eight and began lessons with Gethyn Jones of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Winner of the Andrew Brown Performance Prize and the Sir Thomas Beecham Scholarship, Nick studied at the Royal Academy of Music with David Strange, Colin Carr and Zara Nelsova.
He continued his studies in Canada with Paul Marleyn, winning the University of Manitoba Concerto Competition and making numerous recordings of world premieres for CBC National Radio with the contemporary music group Groundswell New Music.
Nick has appeared as a concerto soloist across the UK, Europe and North America, and performs regularly as an orchestral musician with leading ensembles including the Royal Northern Sinfonia, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic, and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. He has also appeared on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 3 and BBC Radio 6, as well as performing at Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage.
Nick has been the cellist of the Liverpool String Quartet since 2010 and greatly enjoys the wide-ranging repertoire and collaborative projects undertaken by the ensemble.
Since 2025, Nick has been Principal Cello of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.