In recent years, Dutch violinist Niek Baar has established himself as a charismatic and serious musician, captivating audiences both nationally and internationally. He has performed in renowned venues such as the Philharmonie Berlin, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Gewandhaus Leipzig, Oriental Centre Shanghai, and the Gasteig in Munich. Niek made his solo debut with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra at just 16 years old and has since become a regular soloist with orchestras including the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie, Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra, Radio Philharmonic Orchestra of the Netherlands, and the Residentie Orkest in The Hague.
After winning numerous national and international competitions and awards, such as the Princess Christina Concours (1st prize, 2010), the International Solo Bach Competition in London (1st prize, 2012), the Grommek Prize at the Kronberg Festival in Germany, and the Kersjes Prize in the Netherlands, Niek's career received a major boost in 2018 when he won first prize at the National Violin Competition “Oskar Back.” Since then, he has performed as a soloist with many Dutch orchestras, including the Amsterdam Sinfonietta, Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonie Zuid-Nederland, and the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra, with whom he recorded his debut album Obsession” in 2022 for Channel Classics / Outhere Music.
A particular highlight in Niek's career was his recent return as a soloist with the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, where he performed Max Bruch's Scottish Fantasy in three concerts at the Rotterdam Doelen and the Concertgebouw Amsterdam. Other recent projects include performances with the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie (featuring works by Paganini, Bruch, and Schumann), the Deutsche Kammerakademie Neuss with Isabelle van Keulen (Mozart, Schnittke), the Israel Chamber Orchestra (Schumann), and the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra (Bruch). He has also given duo recitals with fortepianist Kristian Bezuidenhout at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam.
Looking ahead to the 2024/25 season, Niek's schedule includes a concert tour through Germany with the Nordwestdeutsche Philharmonie Herford and their chief conductor Jonathan Bloxham (Dvořák), as well as a concerto recording and performance with the NFM Symphony Orchestra Wroclaw in Poland under the baton of Christoph Eschenbach (Dvořák). Niek’s third album, featuring works by Schumann and Bruch with the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie and conductor Christoph Poppen, has been released on Channel Classics / Outhere Music in fall 2024.
Niek has developed an intensive and long-term musical collaboration with American pianist Ben Kim. Together, they have performed duo recitals at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Konzerthaus Berlin, and the Gasteig München (broadcast live by BR-Klassik), culminating in their debut at the Philharmonie Essen in November 2021. In 2018, they recorded a CD for 'Avrotros Klassiek' featuring duo works by Kreisler, Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven.
Niek has a particular affinity for the music of Robert Schumann, who fascinates him both as a composer and a person. Schumann’s three violin sonatas and his rarely performed violin concerto are central to Niek's repertoire. In 2023, he released an album of Schumann's violin sonatas with pianist Ben Kim on the Channel Classics / Outhere Music label, which received 5-star reviews from Trouw, Nederlands Dagblad, and Music Magazine Diapason.
Born in Rotterdam in 1991, Niek began violin lessons at the age of eight. By twelve, he was admitted to the preparatory program at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague, where he studied with Mireille van der Wart and Peter Brunt, graduating cum laude in 2012. He then pursued further studies at the Hochschule für Musik 'Hanns Eisler' in Berlin under Prof. Stephan Picard, earning his master’s degree with distinction in 2016. Since then, Niek has continued his studies in Munich with Prof. Christoph Poppen. Other influential mentors include Mihaela Martin and Dutch cellist Anner Bylsma.
Niek plays on the 'ex Vornbaum' violin, crafted by Carlo Bergonzi in Cremona in 1729. This instrument, which belongs to the Tjardus Greidanus Foundation in Amsterdam, has been on loan to Niek since 2014.
Despite his frequent travels abroad, Niek maintains a strong connection to his home country, the Netherlands. In addition to performing numerous concerts there, he serves as an ambassador for the bforyou foundation, which is dedicated to creating opportunities for children in Rotterdam, his birthplace. Niek is also in the process of establishing a foundation to loan instruments to young, talented violinists in the Netherlands.
"In a musical world that is certainly not short of pianists, Ben Kim is one of the chosen few whose playing goes beyond the simple magic of the keyboard and the beauty of the sound. Kim is a storyteller who knows how to captivate his audience from the first note to the last." - Berliner Morgenpost | Mario Felix Vogt
American pianist Ben Kim's performances have been celebrated as what the Süddeutsche Zeitung called "practically euphorie and filled with vitality" and have gained an increasing reputation for an exciting sensibility and integrity. The first prize winner of the 55th ARD International Music Competition for Piano has garnered critical acclaim for his performances worldwide, at renowned venues including Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw, Musikverein, Gewandhaus, Suntory Hall, and the Kennedy Center with symphony orchestras such as the Bavarian Radio, German Radio, Leipzig, Baltimore, Kyushu, Seoul, and St Petersburg Hermitage State Symphony Orchestras.
ln 2017 Ben Kim was the recipient of the Rheingau Music Festival's LOTTO Career Development Prize. The international jury stated: "His brilliant technique and his incredible flair for interpretive refinement are self-evident.. .. an exceptional phenomenon among pianists his generation - such a natural, sympathetic charisma and pleasant modesty, coupled with great virtuosity, are rarely experienced in a leading musician."
ln 2012 he was one of six recipients selected among a pool of more than 13,000 graduates at the Johns Hopkins University to be awarded an Outstanding Recent Graduate Award for outstanding achievement or service in any professional field. Ben's recording of the Chopin Préludes and Impromptus released on Universal Decca was given an Editor's Choice by Record Geijutsu. "Without nervousness or overexcitement, without boasting technique or exaggeration," the critic describes of the album, "Kim plays Chopin's music as if he were breathing it."
He has additional recordings out on Sony Classical and Klavier-Festival Ruhr labels featuring works by his favorite composers, including Mozart, Debussy and Schumann. Ben's most recent recordings of Mozart Piano Concertos (Nos. 11-13, 17, 23-25) with the Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra on Challenge Records have also been critically acclaimed.
Ben has been presented at international festivals, including Klavier-Festival Ruhr, Festspielen Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Rheingau Musik Festival, Kissinger Summer, Bonn Schumann Festival, Sommets Musicaux de Gstaad, EuroArt Prague, Ravinia and Aspen Music Festivals.
Ben was born and raised in Portland, Oregon, where he began studying piano at age five with Dorothy Fahlman. Ben received his Bachelor's degree at the Peabody Conservatory as a student of Leon Fleisher and continued his studies with Yong Hi Moon. ln addition Ben was selected to attend the International Piano Academy Lake Corno in ltaly, a program for seven pianists, headed by Martha Argerich and William Grant Naboré. He finished his studies at the Berlin University of Arts with Klaus Hellwig.
Ben is a longtime member of the German Alpine Society (Deutsche Alpenverein) and resides in Berlin.
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