Bob van Asperen (born 8 October 1947, in Amsterdam) is a Dutch harpsichordist and early keyboard instrument performer, as well as a conductor. He graduated in 1971 from the Amsterdam Conservatory, where he studied the harpsichord with Gustav Leonhardt and the pipe organ with Albert de Klerk. Since then he has been performing extensively in Europe and the rest of the world as a soloist and accompanist/conductor.
In addition to his live performances, he has recorded repeatedly for several labels, including Sony, EMI, Teldec, Virgin, and Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, specialising in the keyboard repertoire of the 16th - 18th centuries, such as the harpsichord works of Froberger, J. S. Bach, and Handel. One of the most important discography projects he has undertaken is the complete keyboard works of C.P.E. Bach and also the complete sonatas of Catalan composer Antonio Soler (Astrée, 1992). Various other projects are under way, while many of his recordings have been awarded numerous prizes, such as the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik and the Diapason d'Or.
Bob van Asperen has taught at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague and the Amsterdam Conservatory and for the past thirty years he has given master-classes in Europe, USA and elsewhere. In addition to his teaching activities, he has contributed as a musicologist and editor of several modern editions of works by J. S. Bach and Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, as well as other early Dutch composers.
Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti was an Italian composer. He is classified primarily as a Baroque composer chronologically, although his music was influential in the development of the Classical style. Like his renowned father Alessandro Scarlatti, he composed in a variety of musical forms, although today he is known mainly for his 555 keyboard sonatas. He spent much of his life in the service of the Portuguese and Spanish royal families.
Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck was a Dutch composer, organist, and pedagogue whose work straddled the end of the Renaissance and beginning of the Baroque eras. He was among the first major keyboard composers of Europe, and his work as a teacher helped establish the north German organ tradition.
Hendrik "Henk" Bouman is a Dutch harpsichordist, fortepianist, conductor and composer of music written in the baroque and classical idioms of the 17th and 18th century.
Johann Jakob Froberger was a German Baroque composer, keyboard virtuoso, and organist. Among the most famous composers of the era, he was influential in developing the musical form of the suite of dances in his keyboard works. His harpsichord pieces are highly idiomatic and programmatic.
Georg Böhm was a German Baroque organist and composer. He is notable for his development of the chorale partita and for his influence on the young J. S. Bach.
Gustav Maria Leonhardt was a Dutch keyboardist, conductor, musicologist, teacher and editor. He was a leading figure in the historically informed performance movement to perform music on period instruments.
A harpsichordist is a person who plays the harpsichord. Harpsichordists may play as soloists, as accompanists, as chamber musicians, or as members of an orchestra, or some combination of these roles. Solo harpsichordists may play unaccompanied sonatas for harpsichord or concertos accompanied by orchestra. Accompanist harpsichordists might accompany singers or instrumentalists, either playing works written for a voice and harpsichord or an orchestral reduction of the orchestra parts. Chamber musician harpsichordists could play in small groups of instrumentalists, such as a quartet or quintet. Baroque-style orchestras and opera pit orchestras typically have a harpsichordist to play the chords in the basso continuo part.
Masaaki Suzuki is a Japanese organist, harpsichordist, conductor, and the founder and music director of the Bach Collegium Japan. With this ensemble he is recording the complete choral works of Johann Sebastian Bach for the Swedish label BIS Records, for which he is also recording Bach's concertos, orchestral suites, and solo works for harpsichord and organ. He is also an artist-in-residence at Yale University and the principal guest conductor of its Schola Cantorum, and has conducted orchestras and choruses around the world.
Antonius Gerhardus Michael "Ton" Koopman is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir.
Igor Kipnis was a German-born American harpsichordist, pianist and conductor.
Josephus Maria Martinus van Veldhoven is a Dutch choral conductor. He studied musicology at the Rijksuniversiteit of Utrecht, and choral and orchestral conducting at the Royal Conservatory, the Hague. He was artistic director of the Netherlands Bach Society from 1983 to 2018. In this capacity, he regularly gave performances at home and abroad of the major works of Johann Sebastian Bach and his predecessors and contemporaries. In addition, he has been the director since 1976 of the Utrechts Barok Consort, which he founded. He has made a great number of radio, television, and CD recordings with his ensembles, and he has appeared in festivals in the Netherlands, many countries in Western Europe, the United States, and Japan.
Patrick Montan is a Swiss harpsichordist and musicologist.
Peter Watchorn is an Australian-born harpsichordist who has combined a virtuosic keyboard technique, musical scholarship and practical experience in the construction of harpsichords copied from original instruments of the 17th and 18th centuries. As well as presenting many solo public performances and broadcasts of baroque keyboard music and participating in choral and orchestral performances, he has made numerous commercial CD recordings of solo harpsichord music from the 17th and 18th centuries.
Jos Van Immerseel is a Belgian harpsichordist, pianist and conductor.
David Ezra Okonşar is a Turkish–Belgian pianist, composer, conductor, writer, and educator. He was previously known as "Mehmet Okonşar".
Pieter Bustijn was a Dutch composer, organist, harpsichordist and carillon player of the Baroque period.
Aapo Häkkinen is a Finnish harpsichordist, clavichordist and organist.
Marius van Altena, born Marius Hendrikus Schweppe is a Dutch tenor. He was one of the pioneers of historically informed performance of Baroque and Renaissance music. He has also sung Baroque opera, worked as conductor and as an academic teacher.
Matteo Messori is an Italian keyboard player, conductor, musicologist, composer and teacher. He performs on period instruments including the harpsichord, pipe organ, clavichord and pedal piano. He founded the early music ensemble Cappella Augustana.
Pieter-Jan Belder is a Dutch instrumentalist in historically informed performance, playing recorder, harpsichord and fortepiano. He founded the ensemble Musica Amphion for recordings and performances.
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