Petar Pejčić - ECHO Rising Star

In Prayer to Ecstasy, young Serbian cellist Petar Pejčić embarks on a musical exploration of spiritual experience: from quiet introspection to physical intensity and ecstatic transcendence. The meditative lines of Bach and Ernest Bloch flow into Ligeti’s gripping sonata and the visceral eruptions of Giovanni Sollima. At the centre of the programme stands a new work by Đuro Živković. Following an earlier collaboration on the composer’s concerto Unceasing Prayers, a profound artistic connection emerged between composer and performer. In the hands of Pejčić – “a wonderful musician with a compelling sense of storytelling,” according to Le Soir – the cello becomes an extension of the voice, expressing the universal and deeply human longing for connection with something beyond oneself.

Petar Pejčić was named a Rising Star for the 2026-2027 season by Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, Konzerthaus Dortmund and Palau de la Música Catalana within the ECHO network. As well as his performance at Bozar, he will be giving an intimate, acoustic concert for the residents of the Klein Kasteeltje, the reception centre for asylum seekers. After the private concert, there will be time for the artist and the residents to meet, talk and share experiences. In collaboration with Fedasil and Orfeo. With the support of the Van Well van der Snoek Foundation.