British violist Paul Beckett is a member of Klangforum Wien since 2023. Previously, he was the violist of Ensemble Recherche. He is a founding member of Trio Estatico alongside violists Megumi Kasakawa & John Stultz. He regularly collaborates with Ensemble Modern, including as guest principal viola of the Ensemble Modern Orchestra. He is an invited guest solo viola at the Bayerische Staatsoper and Staatsorchester Mainz.
Paul Beckett attended Chethams School of Music, before continuing his studies in Manchester at the Royal Northern College of Music under the tutelage of Mark Knight. He then attended the Hochschule für Musik Frankfurt for a specialised master programme in contemporary music.
He has performed with bassoonist Pascal Gallois, Riot Ensemble (UK), Octandre Ensemble (UK), Ensemble Interface (Germany), Sed Contra (Ukraine) and der/gelbe/klang (Germany). His work with notable composers includes Beat Furrer, Sir George Benjamin, Enno Poppe, Georges Aperghis, Oliver Knussen, Hans Abrahamsen, Carola Bauckholt, Hugues Dufourt, and Helmut Lachenmann.