Het Balletorkest (literal translation, ''The Ballet Orchestra'') is a Dutch symphony orchestra, based 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 ...

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 ...

, affiliated with Het Nationale Ballet and the

Nederlands Dans Theater Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT; literal translation Netherlands Dance Theatre) is a Dutch contemporary dance company. NDT is headquartered at the ''Amare'' building in The Hague. NDT also performs at other venues in the Netherlands, including Amste ...

. In 1965, the ''Nederlands Balletorkest'' (Netherlands Ballet Orchestra) was established as the resident orchestra for ''Het Nationale Ballet'' (Dutch National Ballet) and the ''Nederlands Dans Theater'' (Netherlands Dance Theatre). Its chief conductors included Jan Stulen, Lucas Vis, Roelof van Driesten, Thierry Fischer, and Jeppe Moulijn. On 1 January 2002, the ''Nederlands Balletorkest'' took on the new name of the ''Holland Symfonia''. The orchestra had administrative offices in both Haarlem and Amsterdam. The Holland Symfonia had been established after a merger of the

Dutch National Ballet The Dutch National Ballet (Dutch: Het Nationale Ballet) is the official and largest ballet company in the Netherlands. History The Dutch National Ballet was formed in 1961 when the Amsterdam Ballet and the Nederlands Ballet merged. The company h ...

Orchestra and the

North Holland North Holland ( nl, Noord-Holland, ) is a province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevoland. In November 2019, it had a ...

Philharmonic Orchestra. The orchestra primarily gave symphonic concerts at the Philharmonie Haarlem, and continued as the principal orchestra for Dutch National Ballet at the Dutch National Opera & Ballet in

. The orchestra also accompanied touring opera productions in various cities by the ''Nederlandse Reisopera''. The orchestra numbered about 120 regular players, but due to major cuts in subsidies this number was reduced to 45 in 2013. In addition to its symphonic concerts in its home base city of Amsterdam, the orchestra performed in several other Dutch cities such as

Alkmaar Alkmaar () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland, about 30 km north of Amsterdam. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination. The ...

Haarlem Haarlem (; predecessor of ''Harlem'' in English) is a city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland. Haarlem is situated at the northern edge of the Randstad, one of the most populated metropoli ...

Leiden Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...

, and

Hoorn Hoorn () is a city and municipality in the northwest of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the largest town and the traditional capital of the region of West Friesland. Hoorn is located on the Markermeer, 20 kilometers ( ...

. It also collaborated in ballet/dance productions in many cities. Under the name of the Holland Symfonia,

Roy Goodman Roy Goodman (born 26 January 1951) is an English conductor and violinist, specialising in the performance and direction of early music. He became internationally famous as the 12-year-old boy treble soloist in the March 1963 recording of Alle ...

was the orchestra's chief conductor from 2004 to 2006. From 2007 to 2012, Otto Tausk was chief conductor of the orchestra. In 2014, at the behest of Dutch Minister of Culture Jet Bussemaker, the orchestra was further renamed ''Het Balletorkest'', indicative of its reduced tasks and new primary focus on ballet. Existing now as primarily the ballet orchestra for the Dutch National Opera and Ballet, its current conductor is Matthew Rowe, since 2014. The orchestra has commercially recorded for the Cobra label, including the CD "Dutch Sessions".

Chief Conductors

Nederlands Balletorkest: * Jan Stulen (1970-1976) * Lucas Vis (1976-1979) * Roelof van Driesten (1986-1995) *

Thierry Fischer Thierry Fischer (born 28 September 1957) is a Swiss orchestra conductor and flutist. Early life and education Fischer was born in the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (Zambia) to Swiss parents. He studied flute with Aurèle Nicolet and began h ...

(1997-2001) * Jeppe Moulijn (2001-2003) Holland Symfonia: *

(2004-2006) *

Otto Tausk Otto Tausk (born 1970 in Utrecht) is a Dutch conductor. Biography Tausk was a violin student of Viktor Liberman and István Párkányi. He studied conducting with Jurjen Hempel and Kenneth Montgomery. He continued his music studies with Jonas Al ...

(2007–2012) Het Balletorkest: * Matthew Rowe (2014–present)

References

External links

Official Dutch-language page of Het Balletorkest
{{authority control Musical groups established in 2014 Dutch orchestras Musical groups from Amsterdam 2014 establishments in the Netherlands Symphony orchestras