Herman van Vliet
Herman van Vliet (1941) was as a youth drawn to the queen of musical instruments, the organ.
From a teacher at school he received his first music lessons, which were soon to be followed by his study with Wim van der Panne. At the Utrecht Conservatoire he studied with Stoffel van Viegen, Cor Kee, Willem Mudde en Herman Strategier.
Here he received his certificate for solo organ performance in 1965.
At the age of 20, Herman van Vliet was appointed organist of the Dutch Reformed Church in Bodegraven. His career gained more and more renown through his annual series of organ concerts and also through his teachings.
Important factors in his musical education were a course in interpretation with Feike Asma and a performance course with Cor Kee. Because of his predilection towards the art of French symphonic organ music, he took part in the International Master-course of Music in Zürich with Jean Guillou for a number of years.
In 1974 and 1978 he became organist of respectively the Michaëlskerk in Oudewater and the Petruskerk in Woerden.
Chorales lie close to his heart, whether composing his own chorale paraphrases or performing this genre. He also likes discovering creations by lesser-known composers, such as Karg-Elert, Hoyer, Bastiaans, Batiste and Lefébure-Wely.
He made a passionate plea of recognition for Charles-Marie Widor, whose ten integral organ symphonies he performed in 1983 and 1987, in the so-called "Widoriade". These ten symphonies have been performed and recorded for CD at the most famous Cavaillé-Coll organs in France.
As a homage to Feike Asma, Herman van Vliet played Asma's complete published organ oevre in one single day, performing them in ten concerts at the organ of the Evangelisch Lutherse Kerk in the Hague.
Due to his constantly changing choice of programmes, his carefully-chosen registrations and sensitive interpretations, Herman van Vliet enjoys a high reputation as a concert organist. Not only does he give many concerts in the Netherlands each year, he also performs abroad (Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Canada and the United States).
In 1990, he was appointed organist of the St. Joriskerk in Amersfoort.
On account of his great services for French organ art, Herman van Vliet was distinguished with the bronze medal in 1983, the silver medal in 1991 and the "vermeil" in 1997 by the Société Académique "Arts, Sciences, Lettres" in Paris.
Widoriade Vol. II
Symphonies pour orgue, Char..
Widoriade Vol. I
Symphonies pour orgue, Charl..
Witte-orgel Buurkerk Utrecht
in het Nationaal..