Ton Koopman

Ton Koopman, born in 1944 in Zwolle, Netherlands, completed his studies in organ, harpsichord, and musicology and was awarded the Prix d'Excellence. From the very start, historical instruments and authentic performance practice have been at the center of his career, which has concentrated above all on the music of the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1979 Koopman founded the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, followed by the Amsterdam Baroque Choir in 1993. With his two ensembles he has performed in many of the leading concert houses and at all the important festivals across the five continents. As an organist and harpsichord player, he has played on the most historically valuable instruments throughout Europe. Between 1994 and 2000 Ton Koopman was engaged in a complete recording of all the cantatas of Johann Sebastian Bach, an ambitious project that was honored with the ECHO Klassik Award and the Prix Berlioz. For his researches into the Bach cantatas and Passions, Koopman was recognized with an honorary doctorate from the University of Utrecht as well as the City of Leipzig’s Bach Medal. Since 2005 he has devoted himself to a complete recording of the works of Dietrich Buxtehude, which he will bring to a conclusion this year. As a guest conductor, Ton Koopman has partnered with the Royal Concertgebouw, the Boston Symphony, the Chicago Symphony, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin, and the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich. The Cleveland Orchestra has named him “artist-in-residence” for three years beginning in 2011. Ton Koopman is the author of numerous books and specialist articles; he supervised Breitkopf & Härtel’s edition of the complete organ works of Handel. He teaches as Professor of Harpsichord at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague; in addition, he holds a chair in Leiden and is honorary member of the Royal Academy of Music in London as well as President of the International Dietrich Buxtehude Society.

LUCERNE FESTIVAL (IMF) debut on September 4, 1994 with the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra in works of Haydn and Mozart.

May 2010