Ben Gish
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Ben’s Cello Turns 300
A celebration of Benjamin Gish’s remarkable 1727 cello.
For more than four decades, cellist and teacher Ben Gish has performed, taught, and made music with a cello believed to have been made in Bologna in 1727. Join him for three free concerts celebrating the instrument, its history, and the music it continues to make.
Concert Series
All performances are free and open to the public at Walla Walla University’s Melvin K. West Fine Arts Center.
October 13, 2026 · 7 pm
Brahms
Cello Sonata No. 1 in E Minor, Op. 38
Aric Vyhmeister
“Navy Hymn” and “America” for cello and piano
Brahms
Trio in A Minor for clarinet, cello, and piano, Op. 114
Featuring Benjamin Gish, cello; Allison Field and Karlyn Bond, piano; and Ronald Coleman, clarinet.
February 20, 2027 · 7 pm
Schubert
“Trout” Quintet for piano, violin, viola, cello, and string bass
Tchaikovsky
Sextet for two violins, two violas, and two cellos
Additional performers and concert details to be announced.
May 2, 2027 · 2 pm
Piazzolla
Seasons, with Martin Chalifour
Brahms
Piano Quintet
Additional performers and concert details to be announced.
The Cello’s Story
Inside Ben’s cello is a label bearing the name Joannes Florenus Guidantus, the place Bononiae—Bologna—and the handwritten year 1727. No one has definitively authenticated its maker, but the instrument has an extraordinary history that Ben can trace through much of the past century.
Before it came to Ben, the cello belonged to his relative Charlie Boyd, who had inherited it from his own cello teacher. Charlie played it at church and community gatherings and kept a handmade, 40-drawer chest filled with music for piano trios. In 1983, he passed the cello—and its musical life—on to Ben.
The instrument has since accompanied Ben through decades of teaching and performance. It has also needed devoted care. In 1993, while Ben was teaching at Walla Walla Valley Academy, a falling stage wall sent a piece of wood into the cello, breaking a section of its top into hundreds of fragments. Ben collected the pieces in a box. Over the following weeks, luthier Armin Schlieps carefully fitted them back together, like a puzzle, until the cello could play again.
Ben calls it Methuselah. These concerts celebrate its survival, the people who have cared for it, and the music it continues to make.
About Ben
Benjamin Gish is a cellist and teacher based in College Place, Washington. He teaches cello and bass at Walla Walla University and serves as assistant principal cellist with the Walla Walla Symphony.
Ben studied at Walla Walla University and Andrews University, and with Christopher von Baeyer at Washington State University and Owen Carmen at Michigan State University. He also participated in master classes with Joel Krosnick and Channing Robbins.
Now semi-retired, Ben continues to teach and make music in the Walla Walla Valley. He and his wife, Connie Camp Gish, have two children, Julia and James, and five grandchildren.
Contact
For questions about the concerts, teaching, or performances, email info@bengish.com.
Potential Images
Gish, Brahms, Schubert, and Piazzolla. Also, consider the poster image below and additional cello images.
