He was a cellist born in Sheffield, England, as the son of Sri Lankan immigrants.
He studied the cello from the time he was eleven in Siena and Florence, Italy. When he was seventeen he studied with John Barbirolli in the UK and with Pablo Casals in Puerto Rico after having been awarded the Suggia Prize.
Dmitri Mitropoulos, who was greatly impressed by his playing, invited him to make his debut with the New York Philharmonic in Carnegie Hall in 1960.
He became a member of the Arditti Quartet in 1977 and remained with them until 2005 until he decided to concentrate on his solo career.
His numerous recordings include works by Rubbra, Vivaldi, Britten, Berio and Xenakis, and he has worked with Kodaly, Poulenc, Walton and Shostakovich. After a recital he gave in America he was presented with a special bow by Piatigorsky.
He was awarded the Deshamaniya, which is a national honour of Sri Lanka, and given an honorary D. Litt. by the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka.
He died in London, England, in September 2024 after a short illness. He was 85 years old.
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