Kian Soltani plays Elgar’s Cello Concerto

It was bad luck. Only a few days after the premiere of Chabrier’s opera “Gwendoline” at the Théâtre La Monnaie in Brussels, the theatre went bankrupt and had to close. This was certainly not a good start for Chabrier’s opera, and it never really caught on later either. Ernest Chausson had better fortune five years later with his B flat major symphony. “I was all the happier,” said a review, “to be able to hear and praise this symphony, as I have often enough criticised the composer’s earlier work … In any case, it is an important work of great and beautiful design, which does real honour to our school.” These were prophetic words, for soon Chausson’s symphony triumphed far beyond the borders of France. Exactly twenty years later in London, Edward Elgar experienced a similar success story when he conducted the premiere of his Cello Concerto. It was soon to become one of his best loved works, remaining as popular with the public as it has with leading cello virtuosos. Among these is undoubtedly the young star cellist Kian Soltani: “Elgar’s Cello Concerto is one of the most important works we cellists have. I have been playing the concerto a lot lately and it has become one of my favourite works.”