Benjamin Kruithof, Violoncello

Sounds somehow familiar and yet not quite real? That's right! And in two respects. Igor Stravinsky twice made use of a collection of baroque dances and irritated audiences with his contemporary interpretation of them: in 1920 he created the ballet ‘Pulcinella’ from baroque movements by the Venetian composer Domenico Gallo and ten years later condensed them into a suite for cello and piano. A slender, lively work flowed from his pen, while his compatriot Sergei Rachmaninov struck a completely different note at almost the same time: his Sonata for Cello and Piano is full of romantic, sombre passion and composed entirely for the cello. Luxembourg cellist Benjamin Kruithof presents two different but equally virtuoso works in the ‘Debut’ series at the Alte Oper.