Anthon van der Horst

Anthon van der Horst

Anthon van der Horst (born June 20, 1899 in Amsterdam , † March 7, 1965 in Hilversum ) was a Dutch organist , conductor , composer and music teacher . From 1931 to 1965 he was head of the Nederlandse Bachvereniging .

Life

Van der Horst received his musical training from Jean-Baptiste de Pauw, among others . In 1921 he was involved in founding the music school in Amsterdam, where he taught from 1922 to 1927. In 1927 he took over the management of the music school in Hilversum, and in 1935 he became the main organ teacher at the Amsterdam Conservatory . At times he also taught as a main teacher for choir and orchestra conducting. At the time, he had a major influence on the training of Dutch organists: his students include Piet van Amstel , Bernard Bartelink , Jan J. van den Berg , Piet Kee , Albert de Klerk , Frits Mehrtens , Piet Post , Kees de Wijs and Charles de Wolff .

In 1931, van der Horst took over the chairmanship of the Nederlandse Bachvereniging as the successor of the sick Evert Cornelis and until shortly before his death the Good Friday performances of Bach's St. Matthew Passion and the B minor Mass in the Grote Kerk in Naarden , which attracted a large audience from the Attracted at home and abroad. Van der Horst was a permanent organist at the church in Naarden. He was also the conductor of the Royal Oratorios Association in Amsterdam, the Hague Excelsior Choir , the Sursum Corda Choir in Leiden and the Christian Oratorios Association in Utrecht . He made several records, including with the Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Amsterdam Chamber Orchestra.

Awards

In 1919 van der Horst was the first in the Netherlands to be awarded the Prix d'Excellence for organ in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. As an important connoisseur of Bach's church music, he received an honorary theological doctorate from the University of Groningen in 1948 .

Works

Van der Horst's legacy includes over a hundred compositions, mainly for organ, piano and choir, but also songs for solo voice, three symphonies, two organ concerts and a violin concerto.

literature

• Gert Oost: Anthon van der Horst 1899-1965. Leven en werk . Alphen aan de Rijn 1992