Musicians as Lifelong Learners 32 Biographies In respectful and fond memory of Ian Horsbrugh, Max van der Kamp and Yonty Solomon Musicians as Lifelong Learners 32 Biographies Rineke Smilde Eburon Delft 2009 ISBN: 978-90-5972-300-9 This book is a supplement to ‘Musicians as Lifelong Learners: Discovery through Biography’; ISBN: 978-90-5972-301-6 Eburon Academic Publishers Postbus 2867 2601 CW Delft tel.: 015-2131484 / fax: 015-2146888 [email protected] / www.eburon.nl Cover design: digiTAAL ontwerpen, www.dt.nl Photo cover (Tineke Postma): Jos J. Knaepen Photo Henk Meutgeert: Deborah Roffel © 2009 Rineke Smilde. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing from the proprietor. © 2009 Rineke Smilde. Alle rechten voorbehouden. Niets uit deze uitgave mag worden verveelvoudigd, opgeslagen in een geautomatiseerd gegevensbestand, of openbaar gemaakt, in enige vorm of op enige wijze, hetzij elektronisch, mechanisch, door fotokopieën, opnamen, of op enig andere manier, zonder voorafgaande schriftelijke toestemming van de rechthebbende. With gratitude to the Hanze University of Applied Sciences Groningen. Contents Soloists Age category I Izhar Elias, the Netherlands 1 Tineke Postma, the Netherlands 15 Age category II Anton Goudsmit, the Netherlands 28 Yuri Honing, the Netherlands 37 Age category III Michel Strauss, France 51 Rian de Waal, the Netherlands 67 Age category IV Marie Françoise Bucquet, France 83 Yonty Solomon, United Kingdom 96 Teachers / Music educators Age category I Willy Krol, the Netherlands 114 Gijs van Rhijn, the Netherlands 124 Age category II Sanne Posthuma, the Netherlands 134 Christine Stoeger, Germany 147 Age category III Jelle Hogenhuis, the Netherlands 162 Floor Pots, the Netherlands 176 Age category IV Dicky Boeke, the Netherlands 186 Anneke Schilt, the Netherlands 196 Musicians with a portfolio career Age category I Nander Cirkel, the Netherlands 207 Oene van Geel, the Netherlands 220 David Kweksilber, the Netherlands 232 Berdien Vrijland, the Netherlands 243 Age category II Dena DeRose, USA 254 Sean Gregory, United Kingdom 271 Manon Heijne, the Netherlands 283 Joris Teepe, USA and the Netherlands 296 Age category III Corrie van Binsbergen, the Netherlands 306 Marc-Olivier Dupin, France 320 Jacob Slagter, the Netherlands 333 Mist Thorkelsdóttir, Iceland 346 Age category IV Henk Meutgeert, the Netherlands 359 Jiri Prchal, the Netherlands 370 Horst Rickels, the Netherlands 381 Floor van Zutphen, the Netherlands 395 i Izhar Elias Izhar Elias studied the guitar with Ton Terra from the age of seven. He studied at the North Netherlands Conservatoire in Groningen with Erik Westerhof and Remco de Haan (Groningen Guitar Duo), and with Zoran Dukic at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. In 2002 he finished his master’s studies with distinction and was awarded the Nicolaï prize. Elias studied at the Accademia di Studi Superiori l'Ottocento with Carlo Barone in Italy (performance practice of 19th century music). He got interpretation lessons from the violinist Kees Hendrikse. Izhar was awarded first prizes in the National Competition for Young Guitarists, the Princess Christina Competition and the national competition of the Dutch Institute for Young Music Talents. In 1994 he was prize winner in the international competition Printemps de la Guitare. In 1998 he won the second prize in the Tromp Music Competition (Benelux). In 2004 he was finalist in the Aleksander Tansman International Competition of Musical Personalities in Poland. Izhar Elias has given numerous concerts in the Netherlands and abroad, such as Japan, Australia, Italy, Spain, France, Norway, Finland and Estonia. He appeared as soloist with orchestras such as the Residentie Orchestra, the Netherlands Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Brabant Orchestra, the Orchestra l'Ottocento and the Joven Orquesta Nacional de España. Izhar Elias is specialised in the performance practice of early 19th century music. Regularly he is invited for lectures, masterclasses and concerts at national and international festivals, such as the Holland Festival Early Music and the Darwin International Guitar Festival (Australia). Izhar Elias owns an original Guadagnini guitar from 1812. Furthermore he plays chamber music in several duos and ensembles. In 2005 he toured Australia. Together with the recorder player Erik Bosgraaf he gave concerts and master classes during festivals and concert series in Sydney, Darwin, Canberra, Melbourne and Brisbane. In January 2006 Izhar Elias will give a concert and master classes in the Mahidol University of Bangkok, in Thailand. Recently his CD ‘Omaggio a Guadagnini’ was released on the Challenge Records label. This CD contains masterpieces from Giuliani, Sor, Mertz en Castelnuovo-Tedesco, performed on a historical 19th century instrument. I have discovered that there is not only one path to achieve the same goal. Take the example of competitions: it is nonsense that taking part in competitions is the only way to develop an international career. I find it a waste if people get stuck in that. You must be constantly flexible and be aware of the path that fits you personally. Childhood Guitarist Izhar Elias was born in Amsterdam on November 11, 1977 as the only child of a visual artist and a psychologist. Izhar’s father had his workplace opposite the family house in the Jordaan1 and because he saw his father painting all the time, Izhar came to know the visual arts in a very early stage of his life. Before his fifth 1 Soloists I birthday the family moved to a farmhouse in Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, a characteristic village situated at the Amstel river near the city of Amsterdam. Again Izhar spent a lot of time in his father’s workplace, while his mother received clients at home and taught a few days a week at a school in The Hague. Izhar spent his childhood at the farmhouse and meanwhile went to the Vrije School2 in Amstelveen. When he was twelve year old, after the sixth grade of school, Izhar went to Grammar School3 in Amstelveen. Soon after that, at the age of 13, his parents divorced. Izhar started playing the guitar when he was seven years old. At home there were a lot of instruments, one of the instruments being an old guitar and Izhar spent hours trying them out. Actually his deepest wish was to play the trumpet, but he was too young for that; ‚it seemed fun at the time, but I am glad that it did not happen, trumpet does not fit me. The guitar was my second choice at that time, but once I started playing it, I immediately felt it was my instrument.‛ At home there was one classical guitar recording which Izhar often listened to. Izhar went to the community music school in Amstelveen and his guitar teacher was Ton Terra. Izhar was pleased with his teacher; they got along very well: ‚Ton fostered my enthusiasm and provided me with a good basis.‛ Izhar regards making pupils enthusiastic as the most important quality of a teacher: ‚When you are not enthusiastic as a teacher the message will not sink in. It is important to experience music in the first place as something beautiful and enjoyable.‛ The guitar lessons went very well: ‚I never had a severe dip. Ton realised very well what he could not teach me, he could let go and help me make my choices.‛ A critical year in early adolescence The year 1991 was very tumultuous for Izhar, and full of contrasts as well. His parents divorced in this period, the same period where he won the first prize in the Young Guitarists Competition and the Princess Christina Competition. At this latter competition Izhar also gained an extra prize, consisting of a performance as a soloist with the Residentie Orchestra in The Hague. At the age of fourteen this happened: Izhar played Rodrigo’s Fantasia para un Gentilhombre with orchestra. It was an enormous experience for him. Meanwhile Izhar’s private life was very difficult: short after the divorce his mother started a relationship with his guitar teacher. ‚It was terrible, those two confusing worlds. It felt like my mother had taken my father from me, and now she took my guitar teacher as well! I felt very lonely, especially being an only child.‛ Izhar feels that in the first place he came out of this crisis through his instrument: ‚my instrument felt like my friend, who would not let me down. It helped.‛ In total it took Izhar a full year to come to terms with these profound changes. It all resulted in the guitar becoming even more important for him and his love for 2 Izhar Elias playing it strengthening. ‚I was very successful at that moment and the music did not let me down.‛ Izhar’s parents took up ‘co-parenthood’4, but in practice it worked out differently. Izhar’s father remained in Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, he often saw his father, be it by visiting him or by his father visiting Izhar during the week. When Izhar was sixteen years old, his father emigrated to Israel. Again that was not easy, but ‚it was in the air. His roots are in Israel, with all his family and friends living there. At once I saw him much less. Nowadays I only see him once a year. We have a lot of contact; the internet is a blessing and we got used to it. But still saying goodbye after spending a few weeks together is very difficult.‛ Choice for the music profession Around the age of eleven, Izhar already made his choice for a career in music. He remembers the moment: ‚It was just after I performed in the radio programme ‘Für Elise’.