Over het album

The present double CD is a selection from fifty years of recording. They are recordings of his work as an organist, harpsichordist, conductor and orchestra leader. This CD is released on the occasion of his eightieth birthday

This year it is exactly half a century ago that I made my first solo recording for Dutch radio. This year I am also celebrating my eightieth birthday – a nice number. For this double CD I have made a selection from the many recordings and live registrations of the past fifty years.

The double CD opens with my first solo recording, made in Midwolda. I played there on the Hinsz organ, which had just been restored by Flentrop Orgelbouw. It was icecold in the church and my hands had to be warmed with an electric heater.

In 1983 I made a new recording for Dutch radio, now in Appingedam on the restored Hinsz organ there. Unfortunately, a subse-quent recording made in Krewerd has been lost. For Dutch radio I went on to make a series called ‘Groningen organists play the organs in the province of Groningen’. Also, I organised a series of harpsichord concerts in the Lutheran Church in Groningen, where I was able to invite all Dutch harpsi-chordists of repute. Performers in this series included Gustav Leonhardt, Bob van As-peren, Menno van Delft and Glen Wilson. Furthermore, I organised chamber music concerts in the Pepergasthuis in Groningen, then the series ‘Bach in Bunders’ and the series ‘Early Music in the Lutheran Church’. Sadly, no recordings of these concerts are available.

In 1995 I recorded my first solo CD as a harpsichordist, playing on my four Rubio harpsichords. The special feature of this recording is that the instruments were still in their original state as delivered by Rubio. Later three of the four instruments were renovated by Cornelis Bom, after many de-velopments had taken place in the produc-tion of wires. The result of this can be heard on the second CD. The Ruckers has special significance for me, because I quilled and voiced it myself under the supervision of David Rubio. It is still in its original state.