You’re concept of music is very special. You’ve done very special things thanks to music such as the concert for newborn babies. How was the experience?

Actually my concept isn’t very special at all; I just love music and want to share it not only with people who have the same love (and who come to my concerts) but who don’t know about it yet, which means I have to go a bit out of my way, out of the usual concert halls to bring music, in this case Bach’s beautiful Cellosuites to the people. The performance in the maternity ward was just a small part of an idea to reach out to the people; every morning for a week I had announced at different non-classical radiostations that I would be willing to perform that same night in their city and all they had to do was to suggest where I would give that free concert. To play for a new-born was indeed very touching as I suddenly realized that I had the privilege to provide this new life with its first experience of Bach’s genius. Also, because the baby was sleeping, I had to play everything very softly, but in order not to be boring I tried to do all the phrasings and expressions I wanted to do with that first Bachsuite within the pianissimo range which was pretty challenging for me, but I learnt a lot by doing it.

You are very active in terms of social justice. What do you think music can contribute?
I have always been very aware of my huge chance to lead the life I am living; I have never suffered hunger, I have always been secure since my birth, and if there is a chance to bring music to the less fortunate I am very happy to do so, as I just did yesterday in a homeless shelter in Portland, Oregon, where I played for almost an hour cello duets with the principal cellist of the Oregon Symphony. Can music help in terms of social justice? No, I don’t think music can change the world and bring justice to it, but it is an essential human need and everybody has a right to experience music in its purest way, which is in my eyes a live performance. And music can bring people together, more so than sports (and I LOVE sports), which by its competitiveness rather separates people.

You won prizes for piano and cello as a teenager. Why did the cello ultimately claim you?
I always knew that I would earn my living with the cello – maybe because I have always been realistic and wanted to learn an instrument which would allow me to play in an orchestra. I never had the plan to become a soloist, all I wanted to be is a musician and earn my living with music, never mind if it was to teach, to play chamber music, to play in an orchestra or all on my own; for me there is no difference anyway, it is just a huge blessing and honor to be a musician.

You won prizes for piano and cello as a teenager. Why did the cello ultimately claim you?

I always knew that I would earn my living with the cello – maybe because I have always been realistic and wanted to learn an instrument which would allow me to play in an orchestra. I never had the plan to become a soloist, all I wanted to be is a musician and earn my living with music, never mind if it was to teach, to play chambermusic, to play in an orchestra or all on my own; for me there is no difference anyway, it is just a huge blessing and honour to be a musician.


Such a non-stop energy could lead one think you are a very emotive musician. However, you hate exaggerated emotionalism in terms of performing.

Oh no, I love emotions, and the emotional part of music is for me most important. For me it is just not emotional when performances go through the motions of being emotional, maybe indeed exaggerating the emotional side so that at the end the piece of music sounds like its own caricature. I like to compare a musical performance to theatre, the performer to an actor and the music to language; in overly sentimental performances I believe the performer is degrading himself rather to a soap-opera star (telenovela) instead of a serious actor who manages to penetrate any given role and lives the feelings instead of just pretending them. I do hate pretense and fake emotions, this is true, but I would see myself as a very e