Among the most prominent orchestral cellists in the U.S., Robert deMaine also performs widely as a soloist and is a significant educator. By 12, deMaine was performing Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme, Op. 33, with the Oklahoma City Philharmonic. In 2002, he was hired by conductor Neeme Järvi as principal cellist of the Detroit Symphony. He became principal cellist of the Los Angeles Philharnonic under Gustavo Dudamel in 2012. DeMaine has also performed as a soloist under such conductors as Leonard Slatkin, John Williams, and Zubin Mehta. In addition to orchestral, chamber music, and film soundtrack recordings (including Randy Newman's score for Cars 3), deMaine has released several solo recordings, beginning with an album of cello-and-piano works by Fauré, Grieg, and Rachmaninov with pianist Andrew Armstrong. In 2022, deMaine and pianist Peter Takács issued a complete recording of Beethoven's music for cello and piano.