Music in The Netherlands

A little bit of History A country of northwest Europe on the North sea. Inhabited by Germanic tribes during Roman times, the region passed to the Franks (4th–8th century), the Holy Roman Empire (10th century), the dukes of Burgundy (14th–15th century), and then to the house of Hapsburg. The northern part of the region formed the Union of Utrecht in 1579 and achieved its independence as the United Provinces in 1648 after the Thirty Years' War. In the 17th century the country enjoyed great commercial prosperity and expanded its territories in the East and West Indies and elsewhere. The kingdom of the Netherlands, proclaimed at the Congress of Vienna (1814–1815), included Belgium until Amsterdam is the constitutional capital and the largest city; The Hague is the seat of government. Population: 16,500,000.

Famous Composers Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck (April or May, 1562– October 16, 1621) was a Dutch composer, organist, and pedagogue whose work straddled the end of the Renaissance and beginning of the Baroque eras. Sweelinck was a master improviser, and acquired the informal title of the "Orpheus of Amsterdam." Over 70 keyboard works of his have survived, and many of them may be similar to the improvisations that residents of Amsterdam around 1600 were likely to have heard. Even his vocal music, which is more conservative than his keyboard writing, shows a striking rhythmic complexity and an unusual richness of contrapuntal devices. Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck

Famous Composers (2) His influence was international. Some of his music appears in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book, which otherwise mainly contains the work of English composers. Sweelinck wrote variations on John Dowland's internationally famous Lachrimae Pavane, and John Bull, the English keyboard composer, wrote a set of variations on a theme of Sweelinck, indicating the close connection between the different schools of composition across the English Channel.Fitzwilliam Virginal BookDowland Lachrimae PavaneJohn BullEnglish Channel

Famous Composers (3) Jacob van Eyck Born 1590 in Netherlands [?] Died March 26, 1657 in Utrecht, Netherlands Period: Baroque ( ) Country: Netherlands Genres: Chamber

Famous Composers (4) Jacob van Eyck was a blind Dutch carillonist, recorder player, and composer. Though he is known today largely for his collection of recorder solos, Der Fluyten Lust-hof, his contributions to the art of carillon-making and playing were substantial.

Famous Composers (5) In addition to his carillon duties, the cathedral paid Van Eyck an additional salary to wander the grounds of Utrecht cathedral and entertain the passers-by with songs on his recorder. He (presumably consequently) became a skilled improviser on a theme and three collections of his variations for descant recorder were published: Euterpe and the two parts of Der Fluyten Lust-hof (or "The Flute's Pleasure-Garden").

Famous Composers (6) Der Fluyten Lust-hof contains 144 sets of variations on a variety of melodies popular in Renaissance Holland. One of the best known is the variation on Dowland's Pavane Lacrymae. Although Van Eyck wrote them for amateur musicians, the different sets commonly increase in technical difficulty towards the end. Some of them are very difficult indeed. This is one of the largest Renaissance collections of solo recorder music. It is particularly unusual as the instrument used is the less popular descant recorder rather than the more common alto.

Music Sheets Download from (two examples): –

Concert Hall The Concertgebouw is a concert hall in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" literally translates into English as "concert hall". Because of its highly regarded acoustics, the Concertgebouw is considered one of the three finest concert halls in the world, along with Boston's Symphony Hall and the Musikverein in Vienna.[1] AmsterdamNetherlandsacousticsconcert hallsBoston'sSymphony Hall MusikvereinVienna[1]

Activities Play the two downloaded music sheets Have you ever been in The Netherlands? Tell us your experience Place Utrecht and Amsterdam in the map. Ask your history teacher about Utrecht, the peace of Utrecht and Alatriste books.

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