From a bachelor’s degree to a teaching diploma to a master’s degree: Jodok Vuille completed his entire music degree at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts. But now his studies at home have taken the Emmental cellist to Tehran and New Mexico as jodokcello. Thanks to hard work, a little luck, lots of smart decisions and social media.
The coronavirus pandemic in 2020 changed Jodok Vuille’s career forever: during the lockdown, he was temporarily unable to pursue his work as a music and sports teacher, and there were no concerts at all. But lying on his hands is not his thing. He used the time for a trip to the Alpstein - with cello and drone. There he positioned himself in front of a dizzying precipice, with Säntis and the sunset behind him, and played. The drone, fixed on him with infrared, filmed the cello player, sunset and Säntis. This video, which he shot alone on the Alpstein and then edited himself, heralded an unexpected career turnaround: Today, five years later, the Emmental organic farmer’s son has one million followers on YouTube, five million on Tiktok and another five and a half million on Instagram. He has been nominated for the World Influencer Award, which will be presented in Cannes in July. A world tour is being planned. And - an unpleasant side effect - there are thousands of fake accounts that scammers use to get their hands on his fans’ money.
Alone in nature or in the middle of the street
As much as he enjoys working with children, Jodok Vuille gave up his job as a teacher in February. It was no longer compatible with the demands of his new life. His international engagements are now organized by two managers, but in Switzerland he still takes care of everything himself, even preparing his social media posts alone. However, the regularity with which they appear is now determined by his followers: If he doesn’t post a new video for too long, his inbox overflows with worried inquiries. What’s more, his videos are often more complicated these days; he no longer just plays alone in nature, but also shoots in cities where he interacts with people - staged for the most part, but always with a real audience. More preparation is required here: two to three people record what happens when Jodok Vuille stands on the street and starts playing, when someone asks him if he can play a certain song and - oh wonder - he has exactly that song in stock.
These street videos are not necessarily his favorite, but he has since become an entrepreneur and knows that success requires a middle ground between what the algorithm pushes and what you do yourself with enthusiasm. At the moment, the algorithm prefers street videos: Jodok Vuille’s most successful post had 130 million views. It is difficult to argue against this, especially if you are dependent on collaborations, concert and advertising requests. "At the moment, it’s just the hype. But it’s already dying down again; you have to constantly reinvent yourself anyway," he comments on this development.
Learning in uncharted territory
The cellist is lucky: staying authentic is easy for him. So he plays the music he wants to play. "I have a simple taste in music," he says of himself. In other words, one that is popular on social media. "’Can’t help falling in love’ or ’Bella Ciao’ are always popular," he says. When the evaluations showed that he was surprisingly most successful in Tehran of all the cities in the world, he also added Persian songs to his repertoire.
Back to the beginnings
For all his success there, social media are only a means to an end for Jodok Vuille. Firstly, he states soberly: "Social media is a bubble, a hype that can quickly be over again." And secondly, his goal, with which he began his training as a cellist in the first place, is still the same: the stage, performing live in front of an audience without editing and without the possibility of a second take, but with stage fright and direct interaction with a large audience. Instead, he has developed an elaborate, well-paced show with show professionals, which has already had its Swiss premiere. Now it’s off to the world stage.
From the classroom to the concert hall via social media
Jodok Vuille spent eight years learning and perfecting his cello playing skills at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts; he completed his preliminary course here, then went on to train as a music teacher after his bachelor’s degree and finally graduated with a master’s degree in solo performance. He then worked for ten years as a music and sports teacher in Hergiswil and gave concerts. The film enthusiast began filming himself playing the cello in nature and posting the films as @jodokcello, first on YouTube, then also on Instagram and Tiktok. In February, he gave up his job as a teacher and has since concentrated on his online career. However, his goal remains the same: The big gig in international concert halls.
Text: Senta van de Weetering
Photo: Jodok Vuille
Published on May 21, 2025
