“Find role models everywhere. It doesn’t have to be in the field that your child is going into. And make them very proud of what they’re doing and never, never allow them a sense that they can’t do anything.” — Dr. Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason
In this episode of the Cello Museum Podcast, Dr. Brenda Neece returns to a May 2021 Cello Book Club conversation with Dr. Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason, author of House of Music: Raising the Kanneh-Masons.
We originally chose this book for our May 2021 Cello Book Club in celebration of Mother’s Day in the United States. Returning to the conversation now, in May 2026, feels especially fitting as we once again mark a month devoted to honoring mothers and the often unseen work that helps young musicians grow.
Known around the world as the mother of the remarkable Kanneh-Mason musicians — including cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason and pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason — Dr. Kanneh-Mason offers a deeply human view of family life behind the performances.
This conversation explores motherhood, memory, practice, identity, representation, music education, and the delicate balance between guidance and freedom.
In this episode:
- A reading from the epilogue of House of Music
- Motherhood beyond the success story
- Guidance, freedom, and “healthy neglect”
- Practice as attention
- Home, heritage, and belonging
- Role models, representation, and opening doors
- Music as a resource for life
- The importance of music education
- Motherhood, identity, and the work behind the music
Since this conversation was recorded, Dr. Kanneh-Mason has continued exploring many of these themes in her 2025 book To Be Young, Gifted and Black. Her son, cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, has also written The Power of Music: How Music Connects Us All.
Links & Resources:
Dr. Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason
https://www.kannehmasons.com/project/kadiatu-kanneh-mason/
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/kadiatukannehmason/
Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/thekannehmasons
House of Music: Raising the Kanneh-Masons
https://amzn.to/49w71Cj
To Be Young, Gifted and Black
https://amzn.to/43o8asl
The Power of Music: How Music Connects Us All by Sheku Kanneh-Mason
https://amzn.to/4nX5ZVK
Explore Unaccompanied Cello This Summer:
If this conversation inspires you to explore the cello more deeply, join Jennifer Kloetzel, Erica Lessie, and Dr. Brenda Neece in Bethany Beach, Delaware, for the Bethany Beach Cellofest, 9–16 August.
Learn more:
https://cellomuseum.org/2026-bethany-beach-cellofest/
Read the full show notes:
https://cellomuseum.org/house-of-music-kadiatu-kanneh-mason-on-motherhood-music-and-family/
Explore more at the Cello Museum:
https://cellomuseum.org
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If this conversation inspires you to explore unaccompanied cello repertoire, join us in Delaware this summer at the Bethany Beach Cellofest (9–16 August). Find details here.
