Harry van der Kamp (born 1947 in Kampen) is a Dutch bass singer in opera and concert. Mostly active in

Historically informed performance Historically informed performance (also referred to as period performance, authentic performance, or HIP) is an approach to the performance of Western classical music, classical music, which aims to be faithful to the approach, manner and style of ...

, he founded the Gesualdo Ensemble. He is also an academic voice teacher.

Singing career

Born in

Kampen Campen or Kampen may refer to: Places Finland * Kampen, the Swedish name of Kamppi, a district in Helsinki Germany * Campen, Germany, a village by the Ems estuary, northwestern Germany, home of the Campen Lighthouse * Campen Castle, a part ...

, van der Kamp studied first law and psychology in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

. Then he studied singing with Elizabeth Cooymans and

Max van Egmond Max van Egmond (born 1 February 1936 in Semarang) is a Dutch bass and baritone singer. He has focused on oratorio and Lied and is known for singing works of Johann Sebastian Bach. He was one of the pioneers of historically informed performance of B ...

at the Amsterdam Sweelinck Conservatory.Harry van der Kamp
on bach-cantatas He has worked mainly in

Early music Early music generally comprises Medieval music (500–1400) and Renaissance music (1400–1600), but can also include Baroque music (1600–1750). Originating in Europe, early music is a broad musical era for the beginning of Western classical m ...

and

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

, including Baroque opera of composers such as

Francesco Cavalli Francesco Cavalli (born Pietro Francesco Caletti-Bruni; 14 February 1602 – 14 January 1676) was a Republic of Venice, Venetian composer, organist and singer of the early Baroque music, Baroque period. He succeeded his teacher Claudio Monteverd ...

Stefano Landi Stefano Landi (baptized 26 February 1587 – 28 October 1639) was an Italian composer and teacher of the early Baroque Roman School. He was an influential early composer of opera, and wrote the earliest opera on a historical subject: ''Il Sa ...

Antonio Cesti Pietro Marc'Antonio Cesti () (baptism 5 August 162314 October 1669), known today primarily as an Italian composer of the Baroque era, was also a singer (tenor), and organist. He was "the most celebrated Italian musician of his generation". Biogra ...

Henry Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer. Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest E ...

Jean-Philippe Rameau Jean-Philippe Rameau (; – ) was a French composer and music theory, music theorist. Regarded as one of the most important French composers and music theorists of the 18th century, he replaced Jean-Baptiste Lully as the dominant composer of Fr ...

Reinhard Keiser Reinhard Keiser (9 January 1674 – 12 September 1739) was a German opera composer based in Hamburg. He wrote over a hundred operas. Johann Adolf Scheibe (writing in 1745) considered him an equal to Johann Kuhnau, George Frideric Handel and Georg ...

and

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

. He sang with the Nederlandse Opera in Monteverdi's operas ''

L'Orfeo ''L'Orfeo'' ( SV 318) (), sometimes called ''La favola d'Orfeo'' , is a late Renaissance/early Baroque ''favola in musica'', or opera, by Claudio Monteverdi, with a libretto by Alessandro Striggio. It is based on the Greek legend of Orpheus, and ...

'' and ''

L'incoronazione di Poppea ''L'incoronazione di Poppea'' ( SV 308, ''The Coronation of Poppaea'') is an Italian opera by Claudio Monteverdi. It was Monteverdi's last opera, with a libretto by Giovanni Francesco Busenello, and was first performed at the Teatro Santi Giovanni ...

'', and also in ''Rêves d'un Marco Polo'' of

Claude Vivier Claude Vivier ( ; baptised as Claude Roger; 14 April 19487 March 1983) was a Canadian contemporary composer, pianist, poet and ethnomusicologist of Québécois origin. After studying with Karlheinz Stockhausen in Cologne, Vivier became an i ...

Bernard Holland Bernard Holland (born 1933) is an American music critic. He served on the staff of '' The New York Times'' from 1981 until 2008 and held the post of chief music critic from 1995, contributing 4,575 articles to the newspaper. He then became the Nat ...

described his appearance in 1996 as Zoroastro in Handel's ''

Orlando Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures rele ...

'' with Les Arts Florissants, conducted by William Christie, in the

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

: "Harry van der Kamp is the only man, managing Zoroastro's bass arias with pleasing clarity and heft." He recorded several

Bach cantata The cantatas composed by Johann Sebastian Bach, known as Bach cantatas (German: ), are a body of work consisting of over 200 surviving independent works, and at least several dozen that are considered lost. As far as known, Bach's earliest can ...

s and the ''

Mass in B minor The Mass in B minor (), BWV 232, is an extended setting of the Mass ordinary by Johann Sebastian Bach. The composition was completed in 1749, the year before the composer's death, and was to a large extent based on earlier work, such as a Sanctu ...

'' with

Gustav Leonhardt Gustav Maria Leonhardt (30 May 1928 – 16 January 2012) was a Dutch keyboardist, conductor, musicologist, teacher and editor. He was a leading figure in the historically informed performance movement to perform music on period instruments. Leo ...

. On a recording of Bach's ''

St John Passion The ''Passio secundum Joannem'' or ''St John Passion'' (german: Johannes-Passion, link=no), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the older of the surviving Passions by Bach. It was written during his first year as direc ...

'' with

Sigiswald Kuijken Sigiswald Kuijken (; born 16 February 1944) is a Belgian violinist, violist, and conductor known for playing on period and original instruments. Biography Kuijken was born in Dilbeek, near Brussels. He was a member of the Alarius Ensemble of ...

he appeared together with his teacher Max van Egmond and Christoph Prégardien as the

Evangelist Evangelist may refer to: Religion * Four Evangelists, the authors of the canonical Christian Gospels * Evangelism, publicly preaching the Gospel with the intention of spreading the teachings of Jesus Christ * Evangelist (Anglican Church), a c ...

. In 1996 he recorded Bach's ''

St Matthew Passion The ''St Matthew Passion'' (german: Matthäus-Passion, links=-no), BWV 244, is a '' Passion'', a sacred oratorio written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1727 for solo voices, double choir and double orchestra, with libretto by Picander. It sets ...

'' with

Frans Brüggen Franciscus ("Frans") Jozef Brüggen (30 October 1934 – 13 August 2014) was a Dutch Conducting, conductor, recorder player and baroque flautist. Biography Born in Amsterdam, Brüggen was the last of the nine children of August Brüggen, a textile ...

and the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century in a live performance in the Vredenburg (castle), together with

Nico van der Meel Nico van der Meel is a Dutch tenor. He made his debut with the Concertgebouw Orchestra during the 1987/1988 season and made a recording of Bach's ''St John Passion'', conducted by Sigiswald Kuijken. Between 1989 and 1996, he made several tours and ...

(Evangelist),

Kristinn Sigmundsson Kristinn Sigmundsson (born 1 March 1951) is an Icelandic operatic bass. Sigmundsson earned a degree in biology from the University of Iceland. He then worked as a teacher before commencing music studies under Guðmundur Jónsson at the Reykjavi ...

(Jesus),

María Cristina Kiehr María Cristina Kiehr (born in Tandil, Argentina) is a soprano vocalist associated with Baroque music. After receiving her early musical training in Argentina, she moved in 1983 to Europe and studied under René Jacobs at the Schola Cantorum Basil ...

Ian Bostridge Ian Charles Bostridge CBE (born 25 December 1964) is an English tenor, well known for his performances as an opera and lieder singer. Early life and education Bostridge was born in London, the son of Leslie Bostridge and Lillian (née Clark). ...

and

Peter Kooy Peter Kooij (or, internationally Kooy, born 1954, in Soest) is a Dutch bass singer who specializes in baroque music. Biography Kooij started his musical career at 6 years as a choir boy. However he started his musical studies as a violin stud ...

, among others. He performed regularly with the choir

Junge Kantorei Junge Kantorei is a German choir established in 1968 by Joachim Carlos Martini. The choir is noted for its performances of Handel's works. It is based in Frankfurt, Heidelberg, and Marburg and has released a number of recordings. Among them are th ...

Eberbach Abbey Eberbach Abbey (German: Kloster Eberbach) is a former Cistercian monastery in Eltville in the Rheingau, Germany. On account of its Romanesque and early Gothic buildings it is considered one of the most significant architectural heritage sites in ...

, in Monteverdi's ''

Vespro della Beata Vergine ''Vespro della Beata Vergine'' (''Vespers for the Blessed Virgin''), SV 206, is a musical setting by Claudio Monteverdi of the evening vespers on Marian feasts, scored for soloists, choirs, and orchestra. It is an ambitious work in scope and ...

'' in 1978, in Handel's ''

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...

'' in 1979, in Bach's ''St. Matthew Passion'' in 1981 and 1985, and in his ''Mass in B minor'' in 1983. He has worked with such ensembles as the

Hilliard Ensemble The Hilliard Ensemble was a British male vocal quartet originally devoted to the performance of early music. The group was named after the Elizabethan miniaturist painter Nicholas Hilliard. Founded in 1974, the group disbanded in 2014. Although ...

Musica Antiqua Köln Musica Antiqua Köln was an early music group that was founded in 1973 by Reinhard Goebel and fellow students from the Conservatory of Music in Cologne. Musica Antiqua Köln devoted itself largely to the performance of the music of the 17th and 18th ...

or Les Arts Florissants. With the

Huelgas Ensemble The Huelgas Ensemble is a Belgian early music group formed by the Flemish conductor Paul Van Nevel in 1971. The group's performance and extensive discography focuses on Renaissance polyphony. The name of the ensemble refers to a manuscript of poly ...

he recorded works of

Matteo da Perugia Matteo da Perugia (floruit, fl. 1400–1416) was a Medieval Italy, Italian composer, presumably from Perugia. From 1402 to 1407 he was the first ''magister cappellae'' of the Duomo di Milano, Milan Cathedral; his duties included being Cantor (chu ...

. In 1984 he founded the Gesualdo Consort Amsterdam to perform madrigals of the 16th and 17th century, of composers such as

Carlo Gesualdo Carlo Gesualdo da Venosa ( – 8 September 1613) was Prince of Venosa and Count of Conza. As a composer he is known for writing madrigals and pieces of sacred music that use a chromatic language not heard again until the late 19th century ...

Emilio de' Cavalieri Emilio de' Cavalieri (c. 155011 March 1602), or Emilio dei Cavalieri, the spellings "del" and "Cavaliere" are contemporary typographical errors, was an Italian composer, producer, organist, diplomat, choreographer and dancer at the end of th ...

and

Scipione Lacorcia Scipione Lacorcia (fl. 1590–1620) was a Neapolitan composer of madrigals. Biographical data for Lacorcia is almost non-existent. Apart from his activity from 1590 to 1620, culminating in his third book of madrigals for 5 voices, little is k ...

, and also music of the 20th century. Van der Kamp and the Gesualdo Consort completed ''Het Sweelinck Monument'', a first complete recording of the vocal works of

Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck ( ; April or May, 1562 – 16 October 1621) was a Dutch composer, organist, and pedagogue whose work straddled the end of the Renaissance and beginning of the Baroque eras. He was among the first major keyboard compo ...

on 17CDs in October 2010. The recording was awarded the "Klassieke Muziekprijs 2010".

Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husband ...

was present at the commemorative event at the Oude Kerk van Amsterdam on 20 October 2010, and Van der Kamp was made a

Ridder in de Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands ( nl, De Orde van de Nederlandse Leeuw, french: L'Ordre du Lion Néerlandais) is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by King William I of the Netherlands on ...

Teaching career

In 1994 Harry van der Kamp was appointed professor at the

Hochschule für Künste Bremen The University of the Arts Bremen (German: Hochschule für Künste Bremen, HfK Bremen) is a public university in Bremen, Germany. It is one of the most successful arts institutions, and its origins date back to 1873. The University of the Arts Br ...

. He has been teaching at the Stiftung Kloster Michaelstein.Dozenten Stiftung Kloster Michaelstein
teachers of the Foundation for Education and Research (in German)

References

External links

Harry van der Kamp
on Haydn Festival Eisenstadt * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kamp, Harry Van Der 1947 births Living people Dutch basses Operatic basses Dutch academics 20th-century Dutch male opera singers People from Kampen, Overijssel Conservatorium van Amsterdam alumni Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion Academic staff of the University of the Arts Bremen