The Royal Conservatoire The Hague & Juilliard School New York Perform Bach

The Royal Conservatoire of The Hague (KC) joins forces with The Juilliard School, New York for the first time for a joint performance of Bach’s masterpiece, the Mass in B minor. Under the direction of world-renowned conductor and Bach specialist Ton Koopman, 63 outstanding students from both academies will join to form a new orchestra and choir exclusively for these performances. Performing such a masterpiece in this setting, and being led by Koopman is of enormous importance for the development of young talent. The première will take place on November 18 in Boston as part of the Early Music Festival. This will be followed by a performance at Alice Tully Hall in New York on November 19. 

The collaboration between these two world famous conservatoires is a special one. While the KC has a long tradition and a big name in Early Music, Juilliard is still relatively new to the scene. The joint performance of Bach’s masterpiece, the Mass in B minor, is proving to be an exciting initiative of the two conservatories and Koopman for the sharing of their knowledge and specialisms, and to learn from each other. The project also offers young talented musicians the opportunity to work together with the Bach specialist Ton Koopman, and to present themselves to an international audience.

Ton Koopman, a strong advocate for the interpretation of Bach’s work by new generations, says about the collaboration: “It is very special that two important institutes for Early Music work together. The cross-pollination between the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague, with its solid and long tradition in Early Music, and the prestigious Juilliard, should be particularly interesting. I’m very much looking forward to this.” 

Of all the talented students studying at the KC and Juilliard, 63 instrumentalists and singers were selected to participate in this project.

About the Royal Conservatoire

Royal Conservatoire At the Royal Conservatoire (KC) students prepare themselves for their international future in the fields of music and dance. It is the ambition of the KC to provide the best training and preparation for an international professional practice, via the best of teachers and the production of exceptional projects. This is not only in the interests of the students, but it is an important and necessary contribution to the development of the music and dance climate in The Netherlands.
Over the years the KC has become a leading international conservatoire with an excellent assessment from the Dutch-Flemish Accreditation Organisation. Also beyond The Netherlands, the KC is
renowned for offering international programmes of excellence. Furthermore, the KC is part of an extensive network of top conservatoires world-wide.

About Juilliard Historical Performance

Juilliard’s full-scholarship Historical Performance program was established and endowed in 2009 by the generous support of Bruce and Suzie Kovner, and is open to candidates for the Master of Music, Graduate Diploma, and Doctor of Musical Arts degrees, and offers a comprehensive study of music from the 17th and 18th centuries. A high-profile concert season of opera, orchestral, and chamber music is augmented by a performance-oriented curriculum that fosters an informed, vital understanding of the many issues unique to period-instrument performances with the level of technical excellence and musical integrity for which Juilliard is renowned. The faculty comprises many of the leading performers and scholars in the field. Frequent collaborations with Juilliard’s Ellen and James S. Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts and the integration of modern-instrument majors outside of the Historical Performance program have introduced new repertoires and increased awareness of historical performance practice at Juilliard.