‘Up-close’ to feature in two Van der Aa portrait concerts

Vakil Eelman

Michel van der Aa’s concerto for cello, string ensemble and film, Up-Close, will feature in two composer portrait concerts taking place in the Netherlands this month. These will be the first performances of this widely acclaimed work since its premiere tour of six of Europe’s leading concert halls in 2011.

The first of the two concerts will be on 8th November at the Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ, Amsterdam, while the second takes place three days later as part of the ‘s-Hertogenbosch November Music Festival.

Both concerts set Up-Close alongside three other works in which string predominate: Imprint for Baroque orchestra (2005), Memo, for solo violin and tape (2003), and Oog for solo cello and soudtrack (1995) – one of the most popular of all Van der Aa’s works.

The Amsterdam Sinfonietta, led by its artistic director Candida Thompson, will perform alongside the soloists Jacobien Rozemond (violin), Örs Köszeghy (cello) and, for the first time, Kaori Yamagami as the solo cellist in Up-Close.