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Anner Bylsma

Anner Bylsma (Cello)

Born: 17th February 1934, The Hague

Died: 25th July 2019, Amsterdam

Nationality: Dutch

Dutch cellist Anner Bylsma (1934-2019) received his first cello lessons from his father before going on to study at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague with Carel van Leeuwen Boomkamp; shortly after graduation he won first prize in the Pablo Casals International Cello Competition, and spent much of the 1960s as principal cello of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

In 1968 Bylsma left his position at the Concertgebouw in order to devote more time to solo and chamber music projects, particularly with Frans Brüggen and Gustav Leonhardt; their recordings together include music by Couperin, Telemann and Corelli, as well as a set of the Brandenburg Concertos, which BBC Music Magazine described as being ‘among the finest period-instrument versions on the market’.

But it is his interpretations of the Bach Cello Suites which dominate his discography; Bylsma first recorded the works in 1979, using a Matteo Goffriller cello from 1699 and switching to a five-string cello piccolo for the Sixth Suite, and returned to them in the early 1990s on the rarely-recorded Servais Stradivarius from the Smithsonian Institute.

Further Reading: Anner Bylsma

Obituary, Anner Bylsma (1934-2019)

The Dutch cellist and early music pioneer, who was particularly noted for his interpretations of the Bach Cello Suites, has died aged 85.

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