Die 12 Cellisten der Berliner Philharmoniker

A choir of twelve cellists

Die 12 Cellisten der Berliner Philharmoniker return to Amsterdam. Although the world’s best-known cello ensemble is famous for its arrangements of French chansons, Beatles songs and tangos, it has also commissioned new works from more than fifty composers. Among others, Tan Dun, Brett Dean, Iannis Xenakis and Kaija Saariaho have written pieces especially for them.

In 1974, Jean Françaix composed his four-movement Aubade especially for ‘Die 12’, a light-hearted and carefree piece. Fratres by Arvo Pärt is one of the most beloved compositions of the 20th Century and exists in every possible version and instrumentation. Pärt himself created a version for 12 cellos. The twelve cellists had a long-standing wish for a new composition by Giovanni Sollima, and that wish has now been fulfilled with Dust on the Bow.