Early in the morning, the Oude Kerk is a meditative oasis in the city. Since 2017, on every first Friday of the month at 8 a.m., when the rising sun casts its light through the church’s towering windows and the neighbourhood slowly wakes up, visitors can enjoy the Silence music programme. The concerts celebrate the acoustics and space of the Oude Kerk, which invites mostly young, experimental musicians. There are no fixed seats; visitors are welcome to walk around and discover what the music sounds like in different places in the church.

In 2019 organist Jacob Lekkerkerker played a composition for 40 consecutive days in the Oude Kerk, with the light artwork Between Light by Children of the Light. He made one soundtrack out of 40 recordings in the studio. Microphones on the floor of the side aisles amplified the basses of the Vater-Müller organ, microphones in the organ picked up the softest sounds, microphones in the nave register the great monumental sound.

This soundtrack was the starting point for a new live concert by saxophonist and clarinetist David Kweksilber. He improvised live from the High Choir of the church and added another layer of sound.

Due to the Corona crisis, the concert was streamed live

Materials

Instruments, microphone, organ pipes, audio recordings

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