The Groningse Bachvereniging was a Dutch semi-professional mixed choir, which existed from 1945 to 1989 and was known for its performances of Baroque music 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 ...

. It was founded by Johan van der Meer and conducted by him until 1982.

History

Johan van der Meer founded the choir in 1945 on a suggestion by Gerardus van der Leeuw. The choir was formed by amateurs and semi-professional singers. While the great oratorios of

Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

were performed by more than 40 singers, only three voices per part sang the six-part ''St John Passion'' by Johann Christoph Demantius in 1981. During the first quarter century, the Groningse Bachvereniging presented music of any style and period from the 15th to the 20th century. However, the works of Bach prevailed. In 1947, Bach's

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the pre-eminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to Margar ...

s were performed not

a cappella ''A cappella'' (, also , ; ) music is a performance by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Ren ...

, but with instrumental accompaniment, in Baroque performance tradition. In 1955, the choir received the culture prize of Groningen province. The year 1970 was milestone in the choir's history, when van der Meer devoted himself entirely to Baroque music in historical performance. When the regular orchestra Noordelijk Philharmonic Orchestra was not available for a performance of Bach's

Magnificat The Magnificat (Latin for "

y soul Y, or y, is the twenty-fifth and penultimate letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. According to some authorities, it is the sixth (or sevent ...

magnifies

he Lord He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

) is a canticle, also known as the Song of Mary, the Canticle of Mary and, in the Eastern Christianity, Byzantine tradition, the Ode of the Theotokos (). It is traditionally incorporated ...

, van der Meer invited

Nikolaus Harnoncourt Johann Nikolaus Harnoncourt or historically Johann Nikolaus Graf de la Fontaine und d'Harnoncourt-Unverzagt; () (6 December 1929 – 5 March 2016) was an Austrian conductor, particularly known for his historically informed performances of music ...

and his Concentus Musicus Wien to the Netherlands for the first time. In 1973, the choir offered the first historically informed performance in the Netherlands of 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 ...

''. 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 ...

was Marius van Altena, the ''

vox Christi Vox (Latin for 'voice') may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters * Vox (DC Universe character), Mal Duncan * Vox, several characters in the anime series '' Lagrange: The Flower of Rin-ne'' * Gleeman Vox, from the ''Ratch ...

'' was Max van Egmond, the other soloists were three boys from the

Tölzer Knabenchor The Tölzer Knabenchor (Tölz Boys' Choir) is a German boys' choir named after the Upper Bavarian city of Bad Tölz and since 1971 based in Munich. The choir is ranked among the most versatile and sought-after boys' choirs in the world. Histor ...

René Jacobs René Jacobs (born 30 October 1946) is a Belgian musician. He came to fame as a countertenor, but later in his career he became known as a conductor of baroque and classical opera. Biography Countertenor Born in Ghent, Jacobs began his music ...

Harry Geraerts Harry Geraerts (born 22 August 1945) is a Dutch tenor. His repertoire includes the great oratorios, baroque operas, ensemble music and Lieder, especially in the field of Renaissance and Baroque music. Life Born in Utrecht, Geraerts attended sc ...

, Michiel ten Houte de Lange, Frits van Erven Dorens and

Harry van der Kamp Harry van der Kamp (born 1947 in Kampen) is a Dutch bass singer in opera and concert. Mostly active in Historically informed performance, he founded the Gesualdo Ensemble. He is also an academic voice teacher. Singing career Born in Kampen, va ...

Ton Koopman Antonius Gerhardus Michael Koopman (; born 2 October 1944), known professionally as Ton Koopman, is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orches ...

and

Bob van Asperen Bob van Asperen (born 8 October 1947, in Amsterdam) is a Dutch harpsichordist and early keyboard instrument performer, as well as a conductor. He graduated in 1971 from the Amsterdam Conservatory, where he studied the harpsichord with Gustav Leonh ...

played the organs. The performance was recorded live. In 1975, the choir performed and recorded Bach's ''

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 ...

'' at the

Holland Festival The Holland Festival () is the oldest and largest performing arts festival in the Netherlands. It takes place every June in Amsterdam. It comprises theatre, music, opera and modern dance. In recent years, multimedia, visual arts, film and archit ...

; the orchestra was

La Petite Bande La Petite Bande is a Belgium-based ensemble specialising in music of the Baroque and Classical eras played on period instruments. They are particularly known for their recordings of works by Corelli, Rameau, Handel, Bach, Haydn, and Mozart. Hi ...

with concert master

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 ...

). In 1979, they performed and recorded 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 ...

'' in Groningen, again with van Altena as the Evangelist and van Egmond as the ''vox Christi''. The choir also performed vocal compositions of

Josquin Desprez Josquin Lebloitte dit des Prez ( – 27 August 1521) was a composer of High Renaissance music, who is variously described as French or Franco-Flemish. Considered one of the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he was a central figure of the ...

Heinrich Schütz Heinrich Schütz (; 6 November 1672) was a German early Baroque composer and organist, generally regarded as the most important German composer before Johann Sebastian Bach, as well as one of the most important composers of the 17th century. He ...

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 ...

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, ...

. Van der Meer's farewell concert was in 1982, a performance of Handel's ''

Israel in Egypt ''Israel in Egypt'', HWV 54, is a biblical oratorio by the composer George Frideric Handel. Most scholars believe the libretto was prepared by Charles Jennens, who also compiled the biblical texts for Handel's '' Messiah''. It is composed ...

'', with the Fiori Musicali and three trombonists from the Musicalische Compagney.

Jos van Veldhoven Josephus Maria Martinus van Veldhoven (born 1952 in Den Bosch) is a Dutch choral conductor. He studied musicology at the Rijksuniversiteit of Utrecht, and choral and orchestral conducting at the Royal Conservatory, the Hague. He was artistic dire ...

was appointed as director ad interim. In 1984, Rein de Vries became Van der Meer's successor. In 1989, the Groningse Bachvereniging was dismantled. The choir continued its activities as the Capella Groningen.Obituary / discography
viertakt.radio4.nl (26 April 2011). Retrieved 27 January 2012.

References

External links

Capella Groningen
website (formerly Groningse Bachvereniging)

bach-cantatas.com
In memoriam Johan van der Meer
6 May 2011 {{authority control Dutch choirs Early music choirs Musical groups disestablished in 1989 Musical groups established in 1945 Musical groups from Groningen (province)