No matter where you are in life’s journey, music can always connect you to the people around you. Music spans both time and space, bringing together people of all ages and nationalities, and Grachtenfestival, a ten day classical music festival in Amsterdam, illustrates this perfectly.
I always figured classical music was only for people over the age of sixty. Clearly, I was wrong. Grachtenfestival has a program called Kindergrachtenfestival or Junior Grachtenfestival, and it is specifically for audience members under the age of twelve. For children on the younger side, there are concerts, and though I don’t think the toddlers are listening to Mozart’s Requiem--my friends and I could barely sit through that one--they are certainly being exposed to beautiful music at a young age and in a setting they can enjoy. For the older children, there are workshops where kids can hone their musical skills. Grachtenfestival proves that when it comes to classical music, there is something for everyone. I mean, who would’ve thought that a classical music festival would make a great family trip?
Grachtenfestival doesn’t only focus on reaching out to audience members of different ages; it encourages young classical musicians too. Each year, the festival awards the Grachtenfestival prize to a new musician with a promising career, and the winner of the prize receives more than just a nice plaque. He or she also goes on to perform a concert in St. Petersburg and becomes the ‘artist in residence’ at Grachtenfestival the following year. And some of these prize winners are quite young; in two thousand and thirteen, the winner was only twenty four years old! Clearly, this award encourages emerging classical musicians to continue their work.
As far as spanning national borders, every year, over 60,000 people travel from around the Netherlands and the world to see Grachtenfestival. And for good reason. The performances at Grachtenfestival are unique and breathtaking. The Prinsengracht concert, the festival’s most famous concert, is held on a pontoon boat in front of the Pulitzer hotel, and to watch, audience members cram themselves onto boats to listen to some of the most beautiful music in the world. No matter who you are, where you came from, or how much change you have in your pocket, the Prinsengracht concert offers you a brief moment to pause in your life’s journey and listen to the symphony play.
As it relates to musicians, Grachtenfestival works to bring them together too. Of course, all music festivals bring artists together, but Grachtenfestival is particularly special because it encourages musicians to come up with different ensembles each year. In other words, performers at Grachtenfestival must put a new spin on some very old music. Grachtenfestival, then, gives classical musicians a chance to pause in their individual life travels and work together to create something new for the music festival.
Of course, Grachtenfestival is just one example of how a music festival brings people together, and there are plenty of music festivals throughout the world that do something similar. However, Grachtenfestival is special because it takes a specific type of music and makes it accessible to many different types of people. Perhaps, then, in your travels this summer, whether you’re a musician or a spectator, make a stop at Grachtenfestival. If anything, it will bring you closer to the people around you and give you an experience you’ll never forget.
How Bach Brings Us Together
By Alex Dorfman