Elegy & Scherzo

Elegy & Scherzo was written at the request of cellist Yuki Ito to commemorate the 150th birthday of Russian composer Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873 - 1943) in 2023. The composer Johan de Meij used a number of references and quotations from Rachmaninoff's 2nd Symphony (Opus 27) and Symphonic Dances (Opus 45) to capture the Russian master's sound world. Elegy & Scherzo was premiered on 27 October 2023 at the Cankarjev Cathedral in Ljubljana, Slovenia, by the Band of the Slovenian Armed Forces with Yuki Ito as cello soloist under the direction of the composer.