Pierre Fournier (June 24, 1906 - January 8, 1986) was a French cellist who was called the "aristocrat of cellists," on account of his elegant musicianship and majestic sound. He was born in Paris, the son of a French Army general. His mother taught him to play the piano, but he had a mild case of polio as a child and lost dexterity in his feet and legs. Having difficulties with the piano pedals, he turned to the cello. He graduated from the Paris Conservatory at 17, …

Paul Tortelier (March 21, 1914 - December 18, 1990) was a French cellist and composer. Tortelier was born in Paris, the son of a cabinet maker. He was encouraged to play the cello by his father and mother, and at 12 he entered the Paris Conservatoire. He won the first prize in cello at the conservatoire when he was 16, and then he took harmony classes under Jean Gallon. In 1935 Tortelier joined the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra, and played with them until 1937.

Jean-Louis Duport was a cellist. Together with his brother Jean-Pierre (1741-1818), also a cellist, he was student of Martin Berteau (1700-1771). He is perhaps best known today for his 21 etudes for solo cello that constitute the final part of the "Essai sur le doigté du violoncelle et sur la conduite de l'archet" ("Essay on the fingering of the violoncello and on the conduct of the bow") (1806), a seminal work of cello technique.

Jean-Baptiste Bréval was a French cellist and composer. He wrote mostly pieces for his own instrument, and performed many World Premiers of his own pieces. Though he was popular during his time, his works are now rarely performed with the exception of his "Sonata in C", Op. 40 (c. 1795).

Michel Strauss (born 1951, Paris) is a French cellist. Strauss was educated by Paul Tortelier and Maurice Gaudron at the Conservatoire de Paris, where he won first prizes in cello and in chamber music, before continuing his studies at Yale University with Aldo Parisot. In 1980, he was appointed principal solo cello of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and began teaching his own regular cello class at the Paris Conservatoire in 1987.

Jean Baptiste Masse was a French composer and violoncello player. He was an "Ordinaire de la Chambre du Roi" and a member of the King's Bande of Twenty-Four Violins and of the orchestra of the "Comédie Française". Little is known of his life other than the publication dates of his first three volumes of sonatas and the appearance of his name on the payroll of the "Comédie Française" in 1752 as cellist and bass player.

Jean-Guihen Queyras is a French cellist. He has recorded Haydn's and Monn's cello concertos on a period instrument together with the Freiburger Barockorchester. His repertoire also encompasses more recent works, which he performs internationally: he gave the world premieres of Ivan Fedele's cello concerto (Orchestre National de France, Leonard Slatkin) and Gilbert Amy's concerto (Tokyo Symphony Orchestra at Suntory Hall, Tokyo) and, in September 2005, …

Paul Bazelaire (March 4, 1886 - December 11, 1958), was a French cellist. He won many prizes for literature and poetry in France and Belgium.

Alain Meunier (b. Paris, 1942) is a French cellist. Meunier was born the third child among four siblings. Starting the cello at the age of 13 and received premier prix in chamber music at 15 and in cello at 16. He suddenly quit musical activities at the age of 18 and studied musical aesthetics and musicology. However, he began cello again as 22 and played in front of Pablo Casals aiming at Prades Festival. He entered Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena in Italy, …

George Miquelle (1894 - 1977) was born in Lille, France, and began his studies at the age of five when he entered the Lille Conservatoire. At seven, he took up the cello, studying under Emil Dienne. Before he was 19 he had won two first prizes playing at the Lille Conservatoire and at the Paris Conservatoire. After a brief but successful period of concertizing in Europe, …

Gérard Hekking was a French cellist. Born in Nancy, he served as first cellist of the Concertgebouw Orchestra from 1903 until 1914. From 1927 until his death he taught cello at the Paris Conservatory; he died in Paris. Hekking was the cousin of cellists André and Anton Hekking.

Louis Norblin (1781 - 1854) was a French musician. He taught cello at the Paris Conservatoire, where his students included Charles Lebouc.

Víctor Alexander Marie Mirecki Larramat was a Spanish cellist and music teacher of Franco-Polish origin. He was born in Tarbes, France and died in Madrid, Spain.

André-Nicolas Navarra was a French cellist and cello teacher.

Jacques Offenbach (20 June 1819 - 5 October 1880) was a French composer and cellist of the Romantic era and one of the originators of the operetta form. He was one of the most influential composers of popular music in Europe in the 19th century, and many of his works remain in the repertory. While his name remains most closely associated with the French operetta and the Second Empire, it is his one fully operatic masterpiece, Les contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann), …

Auguste-Joseph Franchomme (April 10, 1808 - January 21, 1884) was a French cellist and composer. Franchomme studied at the Conservatoire de Lille with M. Mas and Pierre Baumann, before continuing his education with Jean-Henri Levasseur and Louis-Pierre Norblin at the Conservatoire de Paris, where he won his first prize only after one year. He began his career playing with various orchestras and was appointed solo cello at the Sainte-Chapelle in 1828.

Jean-Pierre Duport (November 27, 1741-December 31, 1818) was a cellist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He owned and played the Duport Stradivarius, which was, until recently, in the possession of the Russian cellist, Mstislav Rostropovich. Along with his brother, Jean-Louis Duport (also a cellist), he was active in the musical life of France and Germany. Jean-Pierre was the son of a dancing master, …

André Hekking was a French cellist. Born in Bordeaux, he studied with Charles de Bériot, touring Spain at fifteen. In 1909 he settled in Paris to become a teacher of the cello, having in the meantime gained a reputation throughout Europe as a virtuoso. He joined the faculty of the Paris Conservatory in 1918, becoming a professor a year later; he also taught at the American Conservatory in Fontainbleau. He died in Paris.

French cellist Felix Battanchon (April 9, 1814-1893) was one of the venerated teachers at the Paris Conservatory. Battanchon wrote many etude collections, including "12 Etudes in Thumb Position, Op. 25", "6 Etudes Without Thumb, Op. 4", "6 Etude-Caprices, Op. 5", and "6 Etudes, Op. 56".

Charles Joseph Lebouc was a French cellist. Born in Besangon, France, Lebouc attended the Conservatoire in Paris where he studied under Vaslin and then Louis Norblin, and later became a cello professor. He played chamber music. He composed some pieces for the cello with piano accompaniment and also wrote "Methode complete et pratique de Violoncelle." He won first prize in cello in 1842 when he was a student of Franchomme, …

Auguste Tolbeque was a French 'cellist who composed etudes for his instrument. He taught at the Marseille Conservatory from 1865-1871, and then joined the "Concerts du Conservertoire" orchestra in Paris. Tolbeque premiered Camille Saint-Saëns "Cello Concerto No. 1", which was dedicated to him.