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Ina Boersma
2011/04/07
alts - Dutch Contralto Mezzosoprano Ina Boersma was born in Wildervank. Her passion for music showed early on. During her youth in Meppel she played the flute and learned to play the organ from Bert Straatman. In her teens she moved to Velp where Piet Cnossen teaches her the organ until her entry exam for the Conservatorium in Arnhem. She studied organ as major with Bert Matter. She also studied the minor’s cembalo with Chris Farr and the violin. After her organ exam she majored in music-education at the Art college of Arnhem and also started with singinglessons as minor with Cornelia van der Horst and Caspar Vinne. During her violin major at the Conservatorium in Hilversum with Joan Berkhemer, she discovered her great passion for singing. She met Elisabeth Cooymans who invited her to work withRead More
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Annie Woud (1901 – 1989)
2011/04/07
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Born in Haarlem 1901, she studied with Schuyl-Hol at her home town and with Irene Schlemmer-Ambros in Vienna. She made her debut in 1929 in Vienna, in Mahler’s Symphony 8. She never appeared on stage. Gaining great success on the concert platform, she reguarly appeared in Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Sweden and in in other European countries. She toured extensively in South America. Willem Mengelberg was her frequent partner. Anne Woud became the most renowned contralto of her generation.
The “Laudamus te” shows this artist at her best. In my opinion, the following recording belongs to the most beautiful renditions of “Laudamus te”.
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Theodora Versteegh (1888 – 1970)
2011/04/07
alts - Theodora Versteegh was born in 1888, in Kerk-Avezaath near Tiel. Her teachers were the two renowned pedagogues Cornélie van Zanten and Tilly Koenen. She made her in Handel’s Joshua in 1914 and dedicated her career exclusively to oratorio, concert and song. She was a wonderful interpreter of Bach’s Passions (she sang the solo contralto part in St. Matthew Passion more than 250 times!) and cantatas. With Jo Vincent, Evert Miedema (later also with Louis van Tulder) and Willem Ravelli she formed a fine singing quartet. Theodora Versteegh regularly appeared in Belgium, Germany and France. In the Thirties she began to work as a singing coach but went on to sing until 1948.Read More
