How cellist Willemijn Knödler is raising awareness for NF1 through music

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The reasons for creating a solo album of music are myriad – the opportunity to explore repertoire, the chance to channel unspoken emotions, or to raise awareness of a topic dear to one’s heart, to name a few.

Encompassing all these reasons is Dutch cellist Willemijn Knödler, who has chosen to channel a personal experience into the creation of a meaningful debut album.

Following studies in The Hague, Amsterdam and the Royal College of Music in London, Knödler now lives in Leiden, the Netherlands, with her partner and their two children. Her six-year-old son, George, has a rare genetic condition called Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), which causes tumours to grow on nerves throughout the body. While these tumours are usually benign, NF1 can lead to severe complications – from learning disabilities to paralysis or disfigurement.

George has been on weekly chemotherapy since July 2023. The treatment is essential but harsh – he has lost the ability to swallow, meaning he’ll never eat, drink or taste food again. Without new options, he faces a lifetime of chemotherapy with only short breaks.

’About a year ago, on a rainy weekday, I was scrolling through my solo cello music, trying to create a new recital programme,’ Knödler told The Strad. 

’At that time, our son George was very ill and needed constant care. Life revolved around hospital visits, sleepless nights, and endless worry – and as a freelance musician in the Netherlands, I received no financial support from the government. It was a hard reality, but music truly saved me.’

Wanting to build a versatile programme she could perform anywhere, anytime, she came across three composer names that stood out: Telemann, Ligeti, Kurtág. She then thought of Handel, with whom she shares a birthday. Within half an hour, she had created a one-hour cello recital consisting entirely of works by composers named George.

’I wanted to record a solo cello album featuring only Georges – and donate all proceeds to research that could improve life for our son George and for other children with NF.’ Armed with a mission, Knödler launched a crowdfunding campaign to fund the album’s production – 588 people donated, raising €10,000 more than she needed.

’I was deeply moved by the belief and encouragement people showed for an idea born on a grey November day.’

The programme on the album consists of compositions that support Knödler in every emotion that colours her life. Ligeti’s Sonata for solo cello contains both a desperate internal dialogue (part 1) and a resolute statement of strength (part 2). Gershwin’s Summertime is a comforting lullaby. Kurtág’s Die Sprüche des Péter Bornemisza evokes feelings of forgiveness, while frenzied virtuosity features in Crumb’s cello solo sonata,

George Bruns’s Scenes from the Jungle Book captures childlike energy, and a lesser-known Fantasy by Telemann contrasts with the freshness and transparency of Baroque music.

The album is complemented by Enescu’s rarely performed Sérénade en Sourdine, recorded with Knödler’s friend and violinist Rosanne Philippens, and a commissioned composition by Wijnand van Klaveren that symbolises fighting a dragon.

Knödler hopes to raise awareness of NF and direct all proceeds of her upcoming album to NF research via the Dutch foundation ’Let’s Beat NF’. The album will be released online and on social media on 14 November 2025, with a charity and release concert on 15 November.

Creating the album has also been a lifeline for Knödler, who acknowledges the challenges of being a mother to a sick child. ’Balancing motherhood and a musical career has never been easy. Women are expected to work as if they have no children and parent as if they have no job.

’Still, I have always been passionate about my cello. After years of interruptions – young children, Covid, and George’s illness – I questioned when and how to really start my career, do what I really wanted to do. But I realised there would never be a “right” time. The time was now.

’Music taught me resilience I never knew I had. Taking myself seriously as a musician again is the greatest gift I could have given myself – just in time for my 40th birthday in February (and Handel’s 341st!)’

More information on George’s album release and concert can be found here.