Netherlands Bach Society

Netherlands Bach Society
Grote of Sint-Vituskerk, where the ensemble has performed traditionally
Background information
Native name	De Nederlandse Bachvereniging
Origin	Naarden, Netherlands
Genres	Baroque music
Years active	1921 (1921)–present
Website	www.bachvereniging.nl

The Netherlands Bach Society (Dutch: De Nederlandse Bachvereniging) is the oldest ensemble for Baroque music in the Netherlands, and possibly in the world. The ensemble was founded in 1921 in Naarden to perform Bach's St Matthew Passion on Good Friday and has performed the work annually since then in the Grote of Sint-Vituskerk (Great Church or St Vitus Church). Jos van Veldhoven has been artistic director and conductor since 1983.

In 2021 the ensemble will be 100 years old. In preparation the Society is publishing a new and freely accessible recording every week, including HD video of all 1080 works of Johann Sebastian Bach, performed by members of the ensemble and guest musicians under the title All of Bach.

De Nederlandse Bachvereniging was officially founded on 13 September 1921. Johan Schoonderbeek was one of the founding members and the first conductor. He had already conducted the St Matthew Passion with the Koninklijke Oratorium Vereniging Excelsior (Royal Oratorio Society Excelsior) in The Hague. The Netherlands Bach Society performed the St Matthew Passion first on Good Friday, 14 April 1922. Following the praxis of the period, the work was not performed completely. Performances of the work became a tradition which has been kept since.

After Schoonderbeek's death in 1927, Evert Cornelis, conductor of the Utrechts Symfonie Orkest, took over and was the first to conduct the complete work. He died in 1931.

His successor was Anthon van der Horst, who also was the organist of the church. He established regular performances of the St Matthew Passion and the Mass in B minor from 1931 until shortly before his death in 1965, attracting listeners from the Nederlands and abroad. He studied facsimiles and tried to keep close to the composer's intentions. In great contrast Willem Mengelberg conducted regularly on Palm Sunday in the Concertgebouw a shortened version of the St Matthew Passion, in a romantic approach with choirs of 450 singers. Nevertheless the performances in Naarden and Amsterdam were similar at first, because orchestra players of the Concertgebouworkest and soloists were the same.