Robin Verheyen

B’Rock Orchestra, Robin Verheyen & Cristina Zavalloni

Il Quaderno di Nerina

26.03.2026 — 20:00
Bozar, Hall M
€ 30
tickets

B'Rock Orchestra – ensemble

Evgeny Sviridov – artistic direction, violin

Cristina Zavalloni – mezzo-soprano

Robin Verheyen – composition, saxophone

Jhumpa Lahiri – text

 

Coproduction: Bozar, Klarafestival, B’Rock Orchestra

In collaboration with: De Munt/La Monnaie

In the bottom drawer of an old desk, American-British writer Jhumpa Lahiri found a fuchsia notebook with the handwritten letters “Nerina” on the cover. Inside, she discovered a series of everyday poems by this elusive woman, about whom no further details are known. Lahiri moulded and annotated the verses into a layered account that reads like the diary of a nomad with different lives.

It shows striking parallels with the globetrotting life of saxophonist and composer Robin Verheyen. The poetry inspired him to write a brand-new composition that transcends the boundaries of genre and time. In Il Quaderno di Nerina, he blends the colour of historical instruments with saxophone and mezzo-soprano voice. Through improvisation, he builds a bridge between his creation and the refined polyphony in the Fantasias of Baroque composer Henry Purcell.

Estimated end of the concert at 21:30

Post-concert talk with Robin Verheyen, Cristina Zavalloni & Tom Devaere, moderated by Katherina Lindekens - Hall M

 

Your ticket for this concert also gives you access that same evening to Bozar All over the P(a)lace. The exhibitions will stay open late, and you can enjoy a rich programme of performances, concerts, guided tours, film screenings, debates, and DJ sets throughout every corner of Bozar.

programme

Henry Purcell (1659-1695)

Fantasias

(D minor Z 732, F major Z 733, C Minor Z 738, A Minor Z 740, G Major Z 742 D, G minor Z 734)


Robin Verheyen (1983)

Il Quaderno di Nerina (world premiere)

Based on texts from Il Quaderno di Nerina, copyright © 2021 Jhumpa Lahiri

  1. Ouverture
  2. Poem For Ploughshares
  3. Davanzale
  4. Cupboard
  5. Obiettivo Part 1
  6. Obiettivo Part 2
  7. Interlude
  8. For Alberto De Lacerda
  9. Ad Alberto De Lacerda
B’Rock Orchestra plays with gritty honesty and piercing sweetness.
The Financial Times

Robin Verheyen © Frank Emmers