Grote Kerk Den Bosch: NETHERLANDS

The Grote Kerk (Great Church) of Den Bosch is a place that had quite a bit of significance for me during my time in the Netherlands. It was a place that housed regular Bach cantatas throughout the year, and when I was a student, I would come and play some of the most divine music with fellow musicians. There are plenty of cantatas, and so, it was always a nice discovery to see what was on the menu on any particular weekend.

Sadly, as I grew more busy with other jobs, I wasn't always able to do these cantata jobs... but near the end of my time in Europe, I was able to fit in one last one. It was a pretty hideous travel straight from a tour and the airport to Den Bosch instead of going home... but it fit, and I did it!

Something that I would always try to make time for when playing in Den Bosch, would be to stop by the famous bakery that makes the Bosche-ballen... my girls (and I) loved these cream filled, chocolate covered delicacies that hail from this town. My wife would eat them as well, but I suspect that it was the rest of us that were more into it...

The church has changed quite a lot since the days when I first started playing in it as a student. It has been quite heavily renovated and modernised, whilst keeping many of the wood trappings of the old church as well. Now, there is much more tiling and hard surfaces, which makes for quite a booming acoustic.

Pride of place is the huge church organ, which is still used for the services. In this acoustic, it is nearly deafening when it its going in full flight... but there is something quite majestic about it when it is really pulled to its limits... sometimes, I really wonder if the building will fall down around these huge instruments!

Before the renovations, this was the preferred facing for the congregation (and the musicians)... but since the renovation, people now sit facing in the long direction instead.

Of much more interest to me is the small chamber organ much closer to the ground. I love these musical pieces, I wish I could have one of them in my room, but it would be a touch impractical!