Claudia Kühne (born 1981) is a German-Swiss cellist, performer, composer, director and cultural manager whose work spans concert halls, performance art and musical theatre. She grew up in a musical environment and began performing publicly as a soloist and chamber musician while still a teenager. At the age of 13, she attended international masterclasses, followed by her first sonata recital at the age of 16.

Her professional training took her to renowned institutions: as a junior student to what is now the Berlin University of the Arts, later to full-time studies in Berlin and at the Zurich University of the Arts. There she studied with Thomas Grossenbacher, Raphael Wallfisch and Roel Dieltiens, among others, and graduated in concert performance and in teaching with distinction.

Kühnes‘ artistic profile is characterised by openness and curiosity: in addition to solo performances with orchestras in Germany and Peru, she has devoted herself intensively to chamber music. At the same time, she has developed her own unique approach to musical theatre, spatial research and interdisciplinary art. In 2008, she founded the ensemble RaUmWege, which has since realised projects combining music, movement, architecture and scenic research. These include the productions Grenzwege (premiere 2008) and the chamber opera GRAUMINUS – eine karte des jetzt (premiere 2011). Since 2018, RaUmWege has been based in Thun, where it regularly presents new works.

Kühne combines instrumental precision with performative presence. With cello, electric cello, voice and electronics, she creates atmospherically dense sound spaces that dissolve the boundaries between concert, installation and performance. Her most recent projects include Kühne(r) Vogel! – Kodály Recomposed, which premiered in 2025 and combines a reinterpretation of Kodály’s Duo for Violin and Violoncello with her own composition as a tribute to Kodály.

In addition to her work as an artist, Claudia Kühne is also involved in teaching: she has been teaching at the Worblental Kiesental Music School since 2024 and offers private lessons in the Thun region. Her teaching combines technical fundamentals with artistic openness — an approach that also characterises her entire body of work.

She lives with her family in Thun and works independently at Atelierhaus Thun. Together with Regula Tanner, she also curates the programme for Thuner Kulturnacht.