Rieteke Hölscher (1969) is a Dutch composer and pianist. She studied piano both classical and jazz at the Hilversum (1992) and composition (2016) at the Utrecht Conservatory.
As a composer, Rieteke Hölscher is always looking for new connections, often combining contemporary music with education or different art forms. In 2018 she created 'Il Cibo per La Musica' for Youth Orchestra Bloembollenstreek, and in 2019 the project 'Disturbing Light', a composition for tape, live music and art video, performed by her own ensemble Cross Meeting. She also wrote 'Flarden' for sixteen bassoonists, which premiered in October 2021 - performed by a mix of (advanced) amateurs, conservatory students and professionals - during the international bassoon festival Bassoons for Future in Maastricht.
Her work is performed at home and abroad by renowned musicians such as the Groot Omroepkoor; the Utrecht Student Cantorij; Marcel Worms and Bram van Sambeek.
In her compositions Hölscher aims to achieve an unique sound with great accessibility, with the ideal to bridge the gap between music history, contemporary music and the audience. Her colorful music is best described as straight and emotional with lyrical melodic lines, attention for timbre and an original use of extended techniques. Rieteke has also a strong commitment to both audience and performers without making creative concessions.
Hölscher was nominated in 2012 for the Composition Prize of Muziek Centrum Nederland and was in 2015 also a laureate of Save the Bassoon (a contest in cooperation with Bram van Sambeek, Gaudeamus and Grachtenfestival Amsterdam). Her sketch for Robot Toy Piano was selected for the Gaudeamus Muziekweek in Utrecht in September and premiered in December 2017 during the Uncaged Toy Piano Festival in New York. Hölschers composition "Travel" was selected for recording by The Netherlands Radio Choir in 2020.
1987-1992: Piano Classical and Jazz - Hilversums Conservatorium (with Frans van Dalen, Tine Schneider)
1988-1992 masterclasses with Fania Chapiro, Frederic Meinders and Hans Broekman
2013-2016: Master Composition - Utrechts Conservatorium (with Caroline Ansink and Jeroen D'hoe)
Minor subjects: jazz-piano with Bert van den Brink, organ with Reitze Smits
Research: Composing for youth orchestra
in the 21st century
Rieteke Hölscher (1969) studied piano classical music and jazz / pop at the conservatory of the Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten (1987-1992) with Frans van Dalen and Tine Schneider, also following masterclasses with Fania Chapiro, Frederic Meinders and Hans Broekman. From 1993 she had solo-lessons for another six years with the famous concert-pianist Rian de Waal.
After graduation she developed herself as an all-round musician. Only in 2011 she made her dream come true and started taking composition-lessons with Jeroen D’hoe, which resulted in a study Master of Music – Composition with Caroline Ansink and Jeroen D’hoe at the Utrecht Conservatory (2013), where she graduated on her masters degree in 2016.
Hölscher was nominated in September 2012 for the Composition Prize of ‘Muziek Centrum Nederland’. In 2015 she was also a laureate of ‘Save the Bassoon’ and her sketch for Robot Toy Piano was selected during the Gaudeamus Muziekweek in 2017 (the extended version was premiered at the UnCaged Toy Piano Festival in New York).
In her compositions Hölscher has a strong commitment to audience and performers without making creative concessions. She aims at a unique sound with great accessibility, with the ideal to bridge the gap between music history, contemporary music and the audience. Her music is best described as emotionally-communicative, with a lot of colors, lyrical-melodic lines, attention for timbre and original use of contemporary extended techniques.
Her compositions are performed by renowned musicians and ensembles like the Utrechtse Studenten Cantorij, Marcel Worms (piano) and (students of) Bram van Sambeek (bassoon). In spring 2018 Youth Orchestra Bloembollenstreek reached the final of the National Competition for Youth-orchestra’s with ‘Il Cibo per La Musica’, a composition that Rieteke Hölscher wrote especially
for them.
As a composer, Hölscher is always searching for new connections, often combining contemporary music with education, or combining different art forms.
In 2019 this love for cross-art resulted in the project ‘Disturbing Light’, a composition for tape, live music and art-video and was premiered at a KuuB concert, organized by Gaudeamus and performed by the composer’s own ensemble – Ensemble Cross Meeting.
For the near future also works for recorder-quartet, choir, and solo-bassoon are planned.