Who are we?
Do you know pieces written for a cello quartet? That is, compositions specifically for an ensemble of 4 cellos? Most of us don’t, and yet there is an extensive and valuable repertoire. Even more so, there is a rich Belgian repertoire! This is thanks to ensembles like the Brussels Cello Quartet and the Flemish Cello Quartet, which were active in Belgium in the 20th century. They commissioned works from their contemporaries, leaving a unique imprint on Belgian musical life during the interwar period and the 1940s.
The starting point for the Cristiani Cello Quartet is the collection of cello quartets that Roel Dieltiens sold a few years ago during his charity auction Cello for Charity. This collection consists of more than 60 original manuscripts and scores. Several manuscripts belonged to the Flemish Cello Quartet and include their annotations, providing a fascinating insight into their interpretation more than 70 years ago. Some manuscripts were never published and thus were never performed again. The Cristiani Cello Quartet aims to revive this music and share it with the public.
Where does the name come from?
Lise Cristiani (1827-1853) is known as the first professional female cellist. The cello was a bold choice of instrument for a woman in the first half of the 19th century. However, this Frenchwoman had an adventurous spirit. She traveled across Europe, captivating audiences with her talent. Felix Mendelssohn even composed his Lied ohne Worte op. 109 for her. Her musical journeys took her as far as Russia and Siberia, where she tragically died far too young of cholera. Cristiani played on a Stradivarius cello from 1700, with her name engraved on its side. The instrument has since been named after her.
The starting point for the Cristiani Cello Quartet is the collection of cello quartets that Roel Dieltiens sold a few years ago during his charity auction Cello for Charity. This collection consists of more than 60 original manuscripts and scores. Several manuscripts belonged to the Flemish Cello Quartet and include their annotations, providing a fascinating insight into their interpretation more than 70 years ago. Some manuscripts were never published and thus were never performed again. The Cristiani Cello Quartet aims to revive this music and share it with the public.
Where does the name come from?
Lise Cristiani (1827-1853) is known as the first professional female cellist. The cello was a bold choice of instrument for a woman in the first half of the 19th century. However, this Frenchwoman had an adventurous spirit. She traveled across Europe, captivating audiences with her talent. Felix Mendelssohn even composed his Lied ohne Worte op. 109 for her. Her musical journeys took her as far as Russia and Siberia, where she tragically died far too young of cholera. Cristiani played on a Stradivarius cello from 1700, with her name engraved on its side. The instrument has since been named after her.
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In 2018, Wytske Holtrop graduated cum laude for her master’s degree at the Haute École de Musique de Genève (Geneva University of Music), where she studied with professor François Guye. She obtained a highly distinguished bachelor’s degree at the Koninklijk Conservatorium of Brussels (Royal Conservatoire of Brussels) with professor Jeroen Reuling. Since 2022 Wytske is tutti cellist at the Symfonieorkest Vlaanderen. From 2019 - 2021 she was a member of the Kurt Sanderling orchestra academy of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin. In 2019 her debut CD ‘Cello Frysienne’ came out under the label Aliud records.
She actively took part in numerous masterclasses with, among others, Natalia Gutman, Gary Hoffman and Nicolas Altstaedt. Wytske performed as a soloist with several Dutch orchestras and regularly plays solo recitals. She appeared internationally in festivals as the Internationaal Kamermuziekfestival Schiermonnikoog (The Netherlands) and the Ars SummerFest in Vilnius (Lithuania). In 2015 – 2016, Wytske was selected for the orchestra academy of the National Orchestra of Belgium. She won several prizes contesting in the Stichting Jong Muziektalent Nederland (a foundation that stimulates talented young musicians in The Netherlands) and the Prinses Christina Concours. In addition, she won the Prix du Musée Bonnat during the Académie Ravel in Saint Jean de Luz (France). In 2018, Wytske was awarded the Frisian Emmy ‘Runner-up Award’, named after and from the hands of the renowned Dutch violinist Emmy Verhey. Wytske plays a cello by Tanguy Fraval, Brussels (2011) and uses a bow by Doriane Bodart, Paris (2016). |
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Joyce Kuipers, born in Hasselt in 1987, received her first cello lessons from Rudy Froyen at the Stedelijk Conservatorium in Hasselt. She continued her studies at the Leuven Conservatory where she followed cello classes with Steven Caeyers. She started her higher cello studies with France Springuel at the Antwerp Conservatory. She completed her Master's program with great honors with Justus Grimm at the same conservatory.
Joyce also attended various master classes for cello and chamber music at a.o. Jean-Guihen Queyras, Roel Dieltiens, Maria Kliegel, Louis Claret, Ilya Laporev, Viviane Spanoghe, Midori Seiler, Quartetto Casals, Altenberg Trio Wien, Oxalys ensemble and Spiegel String Quartet. Joyce has been a member of the Symphony Orchestra Flanders since 2017. Also as a freelance orchestra musician, Joyce regularly plays productions at a.o. Le Concert Olympique, the National Orchestra of Belgium, string orchestra Ataneres and she is the leader in the orchestra of the Summer Opera Alden Biesen and this under the direction of some internationally renowned conductors including Jaap van Zweden, René Jacobs, Jos van Immerseel, Martyn Brabbins, John Adams,... Chamber music is also close to her heart, she was cellist of the harp trio Pétillant'Semble with which she gave concerts at home and abroad and she was a member of the Blindman collective. She is the laureate of the Dexia Axion competition and received the STROOM grant, a cultural grant for promising talent from the province of Limburg. |
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Elke Wynants received her first cello lessons at the music academy of Vilvoorde with Claudine Steenackers. At the Boom Academy of Music, she obtained her diploma of Higher Degree 3 with the highest award in 1997. That same year, she became a laureate of the Pro Civitate competition. She followed further studies in Brussels and Antwerp, including with Harro Ruysenaars, France Springuel, Didier Poskin and Jeroen Reuling. She also took master courses with Marie Hallynck, Walter Grimmer, Louis Claret, Gary Hoffman, Justus Grimm, François Guy, Y. Wang and S. Firlej. (Poland) In June 2005, she graduated with great honors from "Le Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles" in the class of Didier Poskin.
In 2001 she was the leader of the cello group in the Young Philharmonic and from 2002 to 2004 she was part of the European Youth Orchestra (EUYO) with which she toured Europe and Brazil. This orchestra was conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy and B. Haitink. She also made a tour "Stronger" with Ronny Mosse in the year 2004-2005 and appeared on the TV1 program Vox Pop in the same year. She is active in various chamber music formations and has already attended master courses with the Alban Berg quartet, the Danel quartet and Oxalys. In October 2005 she won the second prize in the chamber music competition "Horlait Dapsens" with her duo violin - cello. With her quartet « Da Vinci » she studied at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel with the world-famous Artemis quartet. Since 2010 she has been affiliated with the Brussels Philharmonic with which she has international fame and tours around the world. Canada, USA, Japan etc. Since 2017, she has been leading the cello group at Ataneres. Since 2023 she has been part of the string quartet "Modern Times Quartet" |
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Frederika Mareels is active as a cellist both in the field of chamber music and orchestra. For example, she regularly plays in the Belgian National Orchestra, Symphony Orchestra Flanders and CascoPhil.
Frederika was a member of the cello quartet TetraCelli and founder of the Cristiani Cello Quartet. This cello quartet's mission is to play original (Belgian) music. After all, there were already cello quartets in Belgium in the 1930s and 1940s that asked for numerous commissions to contemporary composers. This music is often unpublished and forgotten. In 2020, TetraCelli recorded the CD “Belgian Works for cello quartet” for the Pavane label within this framework. Frederika teaches at the Conservatory of Mechelen and at the Academy of Music and Word in Boom where she is also coordinator. Furthermore, she is one of the driving forces behind the Chamber Music Dating project. This is an annual chamber music course in collaboration with VLAMO. In addition to cello, she also plays double bass in the Mechelen group Manebrandt. They bring a crossover of jazz, world music and folk. Frederika studied cello with Marie Hallynck at the Conservatoire Royal de Musique de Bruxelles and continued her studies at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels in the class of Jeroen Reuling. She also studied with Marcio Carneiro at the Hochschule für Musik in Detmold. She perfected herself in several international master classes with a.o. Philippe Bary, Florian Lauridon, David Cohen, François Guy, Justus Grimm, Marcio Carneiro, Xenia Jankovic, Rimantas Armonas and Johannes Goritzki. |
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