On the life and survival of organ education: A conversation with Jos van der Kooy and Pieter van Dijk

On a Friday afternoon in May in Alkmaar’s Grote Kerk, two conservatory teachers with a combined 81 years of teaching experience sit down for a conversation. Jos van der Kooy has taught for 45 years at various conservatories, including those in Leeuwarden, Alkmaar, and Zwolle, and later at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague. Pieter van Dijk was appointed head organ teacher at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam 36 years ago and has also been affiliated with the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hamburg since 1995.

The conversation takes place in a small room beneath the choir organ—the oldest playable organ in the Netherlands. The church bustles with activity due to the cheese market; tourists photograph the monumental main organ, which celebrates its 300th anniversary this year.

During the conversation, they hear an organist climbing the stairs for a cheese market concert. This organist is one of Pieter van Dijk’s final students. Like Jos van der Kooy, van Dijk will retire in September. Their upcoming departure from conservatory teaching provides a fitting moment for reflection on the past and consideration of the future of organ education and organ culture in the Netherlands.