By Treasure Uboh-Ekong

From classical music and African compositions to Afrobeats, film and theatre, Emmanuel Oluwatunmise has built a creative career that cuts across music and acting.

For Olayenikan Emmanuel Oluwatunmise, the cello and the film set may represent different creative worlds, but both have become important parts of his journey as an artist.

A Nigerian cellist, musician and actor, Oluwatunmise has built a career that spans classical and contemporary music, acting, teaching and collaboration, taking him from concert stages in Nigeria to performances across Africa and the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival in South Africa.

His journey has also seen him bring the cello into contemporary Nigerian music, perform works by African composers, create cello covers of popular songs and take on roles in television, film and theatre.

A graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, where he studied Microbiology, Oluwatunmise developed his musical career alongside his academic pursuits.

While at the university, he continued taking lessons, attending rehearsals, performing and collaborating with other musicians. His academic background and musical development therefore grew alongside each other rather than one replacing the other.

That balance has remained a defining feature of his career.

Rather than limiting himself to one profession, Oluwatunmise has continued to explore different forms of creative expression, with the cello providing one avenue and acting another.

Oluwatunmise’s experience with the cello extends across different periods, traditions and genres.

Over the years, he has performed works by composers including Edward Elgar, Johannes Brahms, Camille Saint-Saëns, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, David Popper, Johann Sebastian Bach, Dmitri Shostakovich, Carlo Piatti and Antonio Vivaldi, among others.

His musical repertoire also includes works by Nigerian composers such as Fela Sowande, Thomas Ekundayo Phillips and Seun Owoaje.

Through these works, the cello has become a means of connecting classical music with African musical traditions.

His musical exploration has also extended into contemporary Nigerian music, where he has played cello alongside songs by artistes including Fola, Asake and Flavour.

He has created numerous cello covers, reinterpreting familiar songs through the instrument and presenting contemporary music from a different perspective.

For Oluwatunmise, this versatility has expanded his understanding of what the cello can do.

The instrument, which is often associated with orchestras, chamber music and formal recitals, can also exist within Afrobeats, contemporary Nigerian music, live events and other popular entertainment spaces.

His interest is therefore not only in mastering the traditional repertoire but also in exploring how the cello can adapt to different sounds and creative environments.

Oluwatunmise’s musical journey has taken him beyond Nigeria, with performances in Ghana, Togo, Benin Republic, Ethiopia and South Africa.

His experience includes solo performance, chamber music and orchestral work.

He has performed solo works with Chamber Music Nigeria and played with ensembles including the MUSON Orchestra and Vesta Orchestra.

He was also part of the musical performance for Wole Soyinka’s stage production, The Trials of Brother Jero, with the Vesta Orchestra.

One of the notable international experiences in his journey came in South Africa, where he participated in the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival.

During the festival, he performed solo works and participated in chamber music ensembles, gaining exposure to a different musical environment and working alongside musicians within an international chamber music setting.

The experience added to his development as a performer while exposing him to new musical perspectives and standards.

For a musician, however, international opportunities do not eliminate the pressure that comes with performance.

Behind the polished appearances are long rehearsals, repeated practice, mistakes, corrections and the constant demand to improve.

The same cello that takes a performer onto an international stage also requires the discipline to return to practice when there is no audience and no applause.

Oluwatunmise has also taken the instrument beyond formal concert settings, performing at weddings and major live events where the cello becomes part of celebrations and entertainment.

These experiences have allowed him to explore the instrument in different contexts while continuing to build on his classical foundation.

For Oluwatunmise, the cello has not remained a personal pursuit.
He has helped train other cellists in Nigeria, passing on knowledge gained through years of learning and performance.

He has also been involved in teaching cello performance to children through a Lagos based initiative connected to the Slum2School space.

For children who may never have considered the possibility of playing a cello, the opportunity provides more than an introduction to an instrument.

It creates an avenue for them to discover music, develop discipline and confidence, and recognise creative possibilities they may not previously have encountered.

Teaching has therefore become another part of Oluwatunmise’s musical journey allowing him to pass on knowledge while helping younger people begin their own relationship with music.

His work with African composers and contemporary Nigerian artistes reflects another aspect of his musical development.

By performing works by composers such as Fela Sowande, Thomas Ekundayo Phillips and Seun Owoaje, and by playing cello alongside contemporary songs by artistes including Fola, Asake and Flavour, Oluwatunmise has continued to explore the space between classical music and contemporary African sounds.

The approach challenges the idea that the cello belongs exclusively to formal classical settings.

Through covers, collaborations and live performances, the instrument becomes part of a broader musical conversation.

For Oluwatunmise, the question is not simply where the cello traditionally belongs, but how far it can go.

Alongside his musical career, Oluwatunmise has developed a body of work in acting.
His television credits include Felix in The Johnsons, Stanley in Tinsel, Toafeek in Flatmate, Sikiru “SK” in Bam Bam and Young 2By4 in Slum King.

He also played the cello in the film Up North, bringing his musical and acting abilities together in one production.

On stage, he played Ahide in the play Prideland.

Although acting and music require different forms of performance, both demand discipline, timing, listening and an understanding of how to communicate with an audience.

His experience as a musician has therefore provided skills that can also serve him as an actor, while acting has expanded his understanding of performance beyond music.

Oluwatunmise’s career also reflects the pressure many young creatives face to define themselves by one profession.

He studied Microbiology, yet pursued music. He became a cellist, but also moved into acting. He teaches, records music, creates cello covers and collaborates with contemporary artistes.

For someone building a career across several creative fields, there can be pressure to choose one path and make it easier for people to understand what one does.

There is also the challenge of building a sustainable creative career in an environment where opportunities may not always be predictable.

Auditions may not result in roles. Performances can require weeks of preparation for a few minutes on stage. Songs may require repeated attempts before they reach the desired sound.

There is also the temptation to compare one’s progress with that of other people.

Yet, Oluwatunmise’s journey demonstrates that pursuing different interests does not necessarily mean abandoning direction.

His degree in Microbiology remains part of his story. So do his musical experiences, acting roles, teaching and collaborations.

Each has contributed to the person and performer he has become.

Oluwatunmise has also extended his musical expression into recorded music through an EP titled Sacred Reflection.

The project represents another dimension of his artistic development, giving him an opportunity to explore music beyond live performance.

It is consistent with his broader creative approach not only performing existing works but also creating and interpreting music in his own way.

His cello covers, collaborations and contemporary music performances similarly reflect his interest in exploring sounds beyond traditional boundaries.

For him, the creative journey is not limited to one instrument, one role or one category.

There are still sounds to explore, characters to play, collaborations to pursue and stories to tell.

For all that Oluwatunmise has accomplished, his creative journey remains ongoing.

From studying Microbiology at Obafemi Awolowo University to performing across African countries, participating in the Stellenbosch International Chamber Music Festival, teaching younger musicians, working with orchestras and contemporary artistes, releasing music and appearing in film, television and theatre, his career has continued to take different turns.

The cello has taken him across musical worlds and geographical borders, while acting has opened another avenue for storytelling.

Rather than viewing the two as separate identities, Oluwatunmise continues to develop both.

His story is therefore not simply that of a cellist who became an actor, or an actor who happens to play the cello.

It is the story of a Nigerian creative who has continued to build across disciplines, using music, performance and teaching to explore different possibilities.

And as the applause fades after each performance, the work continues on the strings, on the stage, on the screen and in the spaces where the next chapter of his creative journey is being written.