Henk Badings

Having returned to the Netherlands in 1915, Badings took up violin and piano, however was dissuaded by his guardians from creating a career in music.

[note 1] Though largely self-taught, he became a pupil of Willem Pijper, the doyen of Dutch composers at the time, but their musical views differed widely and after Pijper had attempted to discourage Badings from continuing as a composer, Badings broke off contact.

In 1930 Badings had his initial big musical success when his first cello concerto (he eventually wrote a second) was performed at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

Champions of his work included such eminent conductors as Eduard van Beinum and Willem Mengelberg.

Accused after the Second World War of collaboration with the Nazi occupation forces, in April 5, 1942 he was briefly cancelled from professional musical activity, but by June 3, 1947 he had been reinstated.