Henriëtte Bosmans (1895-1952)
Poème pour violoncelle et orchestre
Concerto pour violoncelle et orchestre n° 1
Concerto pour violoncelle et orchestre n° 2

Raphael Wallfisch, violoncelle
BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Ed Spanjaard, direction

Henriëtte Bosmans’ mother was a pianist and her father played principal cello in Amsterdam's Concertgebouw Orchestra, so it is no wonder that both of these instruments were lasting influences on her musical thinking and sensibilities. Her friendship with cellists Marix Loevensohn and Frieda Belinfante did the rest to guide this Dutch composer’s imagination towards the expressive possibilities of the "little violone". In addition to various pieces of chamber music, the somewhat Iberian-spiced Poème as well as two concertos were written in the early 1920s. Despite their relative proximity in time, Henriëtte Bosmans succeeded in not repeating herself. The works are marked by imaginative forms, wildly varied tasks demanded of the soloist and a sophisticated treatment of the orchestra. Despite these works' success, they had disappeared into the annals of history for far too long.