Jaap van Zweden
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| Jaap van Zweden | |
|---|---|
| Born | December 12, 1960 Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Genre(s) | Classical |
| Occupation(s) | Conductor, pedagogue, violinist |
| Instrument(s) | Violin |
| Years active | 1979-present |
| Associated acts | Orkest van het Oosten Radio Filharmonisch Orkest Residentie Orchestra Dallas Symphony Orchestra |
Jaap van Zweden (pronounced: Yahp vahn ZWEH-dn) (born December 12, 1960 in Amsterdam, Noord-Holland) is a Dutch conductor and violinist. He studied music in Amsterdam. Later, he attended The Juilliard School, studying with Dorothy DeLay. In 1979, he became the concertmaster of the Concertgebouw Orchestra, the youngest violinist ever to hold that position. He held this post until 1995.
Van Zweden began to work as a conductor after Leonard Bernstein invited him to lead an orchestra rehearsal in Berlin. He has stated that he learned much about conducting from observing the various conductors who led concerts of the Concertgebouw Orchestra. He conducted smaller ensembles initially, and became a full-time conductor in 1997.[1]
His first Dutch conducting post was as chief conductor with the Orkest van het Oosten (Orchestra of the East, or the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra) in Enschede, the Netherlands. He served in this post from 1996 through 2000. Van Zweden was chief conductor of the Residentie Orchestra from 2000-2005, with whom he recorded the complete symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven. In 2005, he became chief conductor and artistic leader of the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest (RFO; Netherlands Radio Philharmonic) in Hilversum.
Van Zweden made his US conducting debut with the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra in 1996. His second US guest-conducting appearance was with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra in February 2006, a concert that was highly acclaimed.[2] Based on this engagement, the Dallas Symphony named van Zweden their next Music Director after Andrew Litton, effective with the 2008-2009 season.[1] His initial contract is for four years, where in the first year he is scheduled to conduct 12 weeks of subscription concerts, and for 15 weeks in the subsequent 3 years. For the 2007-2008 season, he holds the title of Music Director Designate and is scheduled to conduct 3 subscription concerts.[3]
In addition to his current post with the RFO and his future Music Directorship with the Dallas Symhony, van Zweden is scheduled to become chief conductor of the deFilharmonie (Royal Flemish Philharmonic) in Antwerp, for an initial contract of 3 years.[3]
Since 1983, van Zweden is married to the artist Aaltje van Zweden-van Buuren. They have a daughter, Anna-Sophie, and three sons, Daniel, Benjamin and Alexander. The van Zwedens have a particular interest in autism, as their son Benjamin is autistic.[1] They have set up the Papageno Foundation for providing autistic children with music therapy.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ a b c Scott Cantrell. "New director for DSO", Dallas Morning News, 1 February 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
- ^ Scott Cantrell. "Guest conductor van Zweden makes quite a showing", Dallas Morning News, 17 February 2006. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
- ^ a b Vivien Schweitzer. "Dallas Symphony Names Jaap van Zweden Music Director", Playbill Arts, 1 February 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
- ^ Laura Korenman. "Conduct Energy. Conduct Heat.", Playbill Arts, 2 April 2007. Retrieved on 2007-08-29.
[edit] External links
| Preceded by Evgeny Svetlanov |
Chief Conductor, Residentie Orchestra 2000–2005 |
Succeeded by Neeme Järvi |
| Preceded by Edo de Waart |
Principal Conductor, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra 2005–present |
Succeeded by incumbent |
