Rick Stotijn received his first lessons at the age of eight, studied at the Conservatory in Amsterdam with his father Peter Stotijn where he graduated with the highest distinction. Later on he studied with Bozo Paradzik at the Hochschule in Freiburg. Rick won several first prizes at ao the Princess Christina Competition, the Young Musical Talent Foundation and in 2013 the Netherlands Music Prize, which is the highest Dutch Music Award foryoung and talented musicians. Many solo appearances at home and abroad were soon tofollow including a Carte Blanche series in the small hall of the Concert gebouw Amsterdam. Rick Stotijn performs regularly as soloist with Orchestra's such as the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Rotterdam ChamberOrchestra and the Arnhem Philharmonic Orchestra. Moreover he is very much in demand for chamber music concerts, performing with Janine Jansen, Jurgen Kussmaul, Gidon Kremer, Christianne Stotijn, Liza Ferschtman, Robert Holl, Mischa Maisky, Bram van Sambeek, Julius Drake, Candida Thompson, Cecilia Bernardini 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 of Janine Jansen in Utrecht.His first Bottesini CD, which came out in 2012, received raving reviews:… Rick Stotijn is a first rate virtuoso, a real master of his instrument…Stotijn let his bass sing, his technique is phenomenal… A disc not to be missed, the best Bottesini cd ever?!… This disc stands on a class of it's own.Future seasons will present trio concerts with his sister Christianne Stotijn and pianist Joseph Breinl throughout Europe and USA, concerts with Janine Jansen to the major capitals in Europe, and a Japan tour with Luzern Festival Orchestra and Claudio Abbado.Rick is currently principal double bass player with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and the Rundfunk Sinfonie Orchester Berlin. As guest principal Rick played regularly in the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Orchestra Mozart and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra. Rick is teacher at the Conservatory of Amsterdam.He performs on a Raffaele & Antonio Gagliano double bass, generously loaned by by theNational Musical Instrument Foundation.