Giovanni Sollima CB2022 © Simon van Boxtel
Giovanni Sollima CB2022 © Simon van Boxtel

Respighi’s world premiere

Giovanni Sollima, Laura van der Heijden + Antwerp Symphony Orchestra
Fri 30 Oct 2026 20:15 - 22:00
Fri 30 Oct 2026
20:15 - 22:00
  • Fri 30 Oct 2026
    20:15 - 22:00
    Grote Zaal
    From Tue 31 Mar 2026 12:00

Program

Ottorino Respighi / Giovanni Sollima Cello Concerto No. 1 (world premiere)
Ottorino Respighi Suite nr. 3 from Antiche Danze ed Arie
Anna Clyne Sound and Fury
William Walton Cello Concerto 

Credits

Giovanni Sollima cello
Laura van der Heijden cello
Antwerp Symphony Orchestra
Stephanie Childress conductor

A recently completed cello concerto and a beloved classic by Walton

Ottorino Respighi composed his first cello concerto in 1902, but only orchestrated the second movement, his famous Adagio con variazioni. Through Respighi’s descendants, Giovanni Sollima received the sketches of the other movements and took it upon himself to finish the orchestration. Now, 124 years after Respighi started writing his Cello Concerto, the piece is ready for its world premiere.

William Walton’s Cello Concerto, commissioned by the Ukrainian cellist Gregor Piatigorsky, did have its premiere straight upon completion. However, the first performances didn’t come about without issues. Piatigorsky suffered a nervous breakdown and Walton himself missed the British premiere due to a severe traffic accident. Nowadays, the work is a beloved classic and a part of Laura van der Heijden’s standard repertoire. She won the BBC Young Musician of the Year Competition in 2012 performing the concerto, as well as releasing it on CD in 2024 with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra – an album which received overwhelming praise. 

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