World premiere Organ Book III by Piet-Jan van Rossum.

On Saturday afternoon, March 29, starting at 3:30 PM, the world premiere of ‘Nun ruhen alle Wälder’, a 15-part mosaic composed by Piet-Jan van Rossum and performed by Dom organist Jan Hage, will take place in the Dom Church. 

The composer also calls it his third organ book, consisting of a set of aphorisms and main parts that each shed light on his personal history with the organ from a different angle. This history runs from his youth next to his father on the organ bench at the Gereformeerde Bond (with the music of Jan Zwart), via his organ studies at the Royal Conservatory with Rienk Jiskoot (with music from the French tradition and Liszt), to his discovery that the organ will always be the instrument with which he is most deeply connected, the instrument that touches his core and can comfort and move him.

Organ Book III consists of:

1. “Zu deinen Gnaden” – prelude

2. “Flügel und Kind”

3. “Ruhe, Kleid und Schuhe” – interlude 1

4. “Am blue Himmelssaal” – Petra van der Schoot gewidmet

5. “Wasser, Stund und Zeiten” – interlude 2

6. “Vieh, Menschen, Städt und Felder” – Gerard Bal gewidmet

7. “Zur Ende, Vater” – Loek Dijkman gewidmet

8. and 9. “Fast unvermeidlich” – interlude 3 and 4

10. “Unsers” – Floor Vogelaar gewidmet

11. “Langmuetig und zur Halfte gebrochen”

12. “Auch euch, ihr meine Lieben” – interlude 5

13. “Fahrt wohl…” – postludium – Jan Geelhoed gewidmet

Piet-Jan van Rossum (b. 1966) is one of the leading Dutch composers, who studied with Louis Andriessen, Klaas de Vries and Peter Jan Wagemans, among others, and has a (rare) affinity with the organ. It is special that a contemporary composer in 2025 makes such a large-scale contribution to organ literature.

The Orgelpark Amsterdam made a financial contribution to this composition assignment.

This concert can be heard and seen as a livestream via You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/domkerkutrecht