Nikola Meeuwsen - Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3

Nikola Meeuwsen with Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 3

In 2025, Nikola Meeuwsen became the first Dutchman ever to win the final of the Queen Elisabeth Competition for Piano in Brussels, arguably the most prestigious music competition in the world. 'In the gigantic solo cadenza of the first movement, Meeuwsen wrapped his stunning power in great emotional depths and a rare insight into Prokofiev's musical structure,' wrote NRC about his performance. Last October, he gave his first solo recital in the Great Pianists series in a sold-out Main Hall. With the Netherlands Philharmonic, he performs Beethoven's lyrical and sometimes dark Third Piano Concerto .

Dvořák's Symphony No. 8

Of all the symphonies Dvořák wrote, the Eighth Symphony is the most energetic and cheerful. 'The melodies flow from my pen as if by themselves,' said Dvořák when he was working on this symphony in the summer of 1889. He had retreated to his summer house on the Czech estate of Vysoká, and the idyllic country life inspired him enormously. After a beautiful introduction by the cellos, a mischievous little bird introduces the cheerful character of this symphony, which is full of positive energy.