Rick Stotijn has collaborated with and performed world premieres of works by composers such as Louis Andriessen, Michel van der Aa, Jesper Nordin and Ned Rorem. Turning a different corner – and to the surprise of many – Rick has also made his instrument dance in works by Piazzolla, Rota and De Falla, “capturing the moods from the romantic to the menacing,”  as Gramophone  wrote about the resulting recording Basso Bailando,  made with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra.
Stotijn studied double bass at the Conservatory in Amsterdam with his father Peter Stotijn, and graduated with the highest distinction. He continued his studies with Božo Paradzik at the Hochschule in Freiburg. He won several first prizes at competitions and was awarded the highest accolade for a musician in the Netherlands – the Dutch Music Prize. As the jury noted, “Rick is a versatile musician with a moving musicality and an overwhelming virtuosity”.  Amongst the many solo appearances which followed worldwide, was a Carte Blanche series in the Recital Hall of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.
Rick Stotijn performs regularly as a soloist with orchestras such as the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Arnhem Philharmonic Orchestra, The Residence Orchestra The Hague, South Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, Toulon Opera Symphony Orchestra, Musica Vitae Sweden and Joensuu Symphony Orchestra.
Rick was principal double bass in the Rundfunk Sinfonie Orchester Berlin and Amsterdam Sinfonietta, and is currently principal in the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Mahler Chamber Orchestra. As guest principal, he plays regularly in the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Orchestra Mozart. He is also member of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.
With regard to chamber music, Rick has worked with Janine Jansen, Christianne Stotijn, Liza Ferschtman, Julius Drake, Cecilia Bernardini, Vilde Frang, Julian Rachlin, Lawrence Power, Tabea Zimmermann, Lars Vogt, Christian Tetzlaff and many others. Rick is a regular guest at festivals such as the Lucerne Festival, Delft Chamber Music Festival and the International Chamber Music Festival in Utrecht.
Rick Stotijn is Professor of Double Bass at the Robert Schumann Hochschule Düsseldorf. He performs on a Raffaele & Antonio Gagliano double bass, generously loaned by the National Musical Instrument Foundation.