The Surinamese soul in German lieder
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Sun 7 Dec 202516:00 - 17:05Excl. drankjeKleine Zaal
Ongeplaceerd Normaal € 19,00 CJP € 15,00 Stadspas € 15,00 Early Bird (13-30jr) € 12,50
Program
15:00 / Foyerdeck 1 / Pre-concert talk
By Astrid Helstone, second cousin of Surinamese composer Johannes Nicolaas Helstone
16:00 / Kleine Zaal / Main program
Lieder of Johannes Nicolaas Helstone, Cor Anijs and Majoie Hajary
Credits
Arturo den Hartog countertenor
Maxime Snaterse piano
In 2024, a surprising performance of the opera Het Pand der Goden (‘The Pledge of the Gods’) by the Surinamese composer Johannes Nicolaas Helstone (1853 - 1927), lighted up The Royal Concertgebouw. The mission to rediscover this Surinamese music continues as countertenor Arturo den Hartog performs never-before-heard songs by Helstone. This is interwoven with excerpts from Helstone’s letters, offering a poignant window into the life of a Surinamese composer in the world of German Lieder. The programme also includes compositions by Majoie Hajary and Cor Anijs, a contemporary of Helstone.
Born into slavery, Johannes Nicolaas Helstone emerged as the foundational figure of Surinamese classical music. After his studies in Leipzig at the end of the 19th century, where he graduated cum laude, he returned to Suriname, bringing the tradition of the German Lied with him. There, much of his work was tragically destroyed in a fire, but some of it eventually found its way into the Allard Pierson collection. Arturo den Hartog is now drawing from this treasure trove of songs that have never before been performed.
This concert will be recorded to be broadcast later by NTR on NPO Klassiek
