Dirk Keetbaas Jr. (June 20, 1921 – July 27, 1995) was a Dutch-born

flautist The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

, composer, and record producer in Canada. He became known as a member of the

Symphony Six The Symphony Six were a group of Canadian musicians under contract to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra (TSO) who were denied entry to the United States for a concert tour in November 1951. Coming at the height of the McCarthy era in the US, the si ...

, a group of six musicians under contract to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra who were denied entry to the United States for a concert tour under suspicion of leftist activities.

Early life

Dirk Keetbaas Jr. was born in

Scheveningen Scheveningen is one of the eight districts of The Hague, Netherlands, as well as a subdistrict (''wijk'') of that city. Scheveningen is a modern seaside resort with a long, sandy beach, an esplanade, a pier, and a lighthouse. The beach is po ...

, the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, to Dirk Keetbaas Sr. (1895-1988), who later became a violist and conductor in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Career

From 1940 to 1945 Keetbaas played with the Central Band of the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

in Ottawa. From 1946 to 1953, he performed in various chamber groups in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, as well as played with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and the CBC Symphony Orchestra. In November 1951 the Toronto Symphony Orchestra was invited to participate in the "Major Symphony Series" in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

, its first appearance in the United States, alongside major US orchestras from Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, and Philadelphia. In keeping with US immigration laws, the orchestra submitted its list of members for clearance. Seven musicians were not given clearance; this was later pared down to six: Keetbaas, William Kuinka, Abe Mannheim, John Moskalyk,

Ruth Budd Ruth June Budd (June 20, 1924 – June 30, 2021) was a Canadian bassist. She became Canada's first professional female bassist when she joined the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in 1947. She was also known as a member of the Symphony Six, a group ...

, and

Steven Staryk Steven Sam Staryk, OC (born 27 April 1932) is a Canadian violin virtuoso. He had a distinguished solo career and was concertmaster of several major orchestras, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Concertgeb ...

(later known as the

), who were denied access to the United States under suspicion of leftist activities. The performers had associated openly with communist or communist front organizations in the vein of artistic collaboration, but denied the charges of political involvement. At the end of the season the orchestra did not renew its contracts with these musicians. This created a controversy in Canada. Keetbaas went on to become the principal flautist for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and the CBC Winnipeg Orchestra from 1953 to 1968. From 1956 to 1966 he directed and performed with the Dirk Keetbaas Players, a wind quintet featuring

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

clarinet The clarinet is a musical instrument in the woodwind family. The instrument has a nearly cylindrical bore and a flared bell, and uses a single reed to produce sound. Clarinets comprise a family of instruments of differing sizes and pitches ...

bassoon The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family, which plays in the tenor and bass ranges. It is composed of six pieces, and is usually made of wood. It is known for its distinctive tone color, wide range, versatility, and virtuo ...

, and

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

. Keetbaas composed a ''Quintet for Winds'' in 1961 and the orchestral overture ''Woodhaven'' in 1965. Keetbaas was the flautist in ''Five Improvisations'' and composer-flautist in ''Three Miniatures for Solo Flute'', ''Music and Musicians of Canada III'' and ''E.gré plays E.gré''. In 1968, Keetbaas began producing records for the new

CBC Records CBC Records was a Canadian record label owned and operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, which distributed CBC programming, including live concert performances, in album and digital format(s)."CBC Records is the corporation's biggest h ...

label and also taught music. He moved to Calgary, Alberta in 1985 and continued teaching composition to private students.

Personal

Around 1935, he married Mary Persoage (1919–2011) in Toronto. They had one son. He died in Calgary on July 27, 1995, at age of 74. He had donated his music collection to the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.1921 births 1995 deaths Canadian classical flautists Dutch emigrants to Canada 20th-century classical musicians 20th-century Canadian male musicians 20th-century flautists