This evening focuses on Ella van Poucke, Artist in residence of AVROTROS Friday Concert. Among other things, she plays works that are connected to Cuba, her mother’s native country. The atmospheric suite by the Cuban composer Joaquín Nin is followed by a new work that the Cuban-American composer Tania León (Pulitzer Prize for Music 2021) composed especially for Ella.

With Ravel, the habanera, a dance that originated in the Cuban capital Havana, crosses the Atlantic Ocean. Then Ella van Poucke puts the spotlight on Sergei Rachmaninov, who was born 150 years ago. His Cello Sonata is a powerful chunk of late romanticism that reminds many listeners of Rachmaninov’s world-famous Second Piano Concerto. And a specially written new piece ‘Tristissima’ by Ukrainian-Dutch composer Maxim Shalygin will get its world premiere.