The organ is missing! No renowned concert hall for Hague cultural complex

Last Thursday, there was another consultation in The Hague about Jo Coenen's new cultural complex. Opponents wanted to get the plans off the table, which at this stage was no longer possible. But a striking argument was that this cultural palace would never be among the renowned concert halls because it lacks an organ. A fallacy or a major problem?

The construction of the Education and Culture Complex (OCC) containing the Residentie Orkest, the Nederlands Danstheater, the Dance and Music Centre The Hague and the Royal Conservatoire has been controversial for some time. It would be too expensive and unnecessary. The latest design also receives criticism: it is a tasteless copy of the collapsed World Trade Center, a box without wrapping paper. But more striking is the observation of a flaw in the plans by ChristenUnie-SGP parliamentary group chairman Pieter Grinwis: there is no organ in the hall.

'That's right,' states councillor Joris Wijsmuller on Broadcasting West, "We did not ask for an organ so it is not in the design. If people want an organ, he says they can go across the street, where the New Church has a beautiful one. Okay, it is hidden behind acoustic panels but something can be done about that, shakes off the politician. However, that New Church mainly hosts small classical concerts, so whether the alderman means well is unclear. After all, what if you had a Matthew Passion want to perform?

'Indeed striking that no account was taken of an organ in the design,' thinks a TivoliVredenburg spokesperson. For logistical reasons, this new building, designed by architect Herman Hertzberger, does not yet have an organ either, but after the insistence of a residents' club it will be installed. This way, you can still perform certain symphonic works. The Orchestra of the 18th Century will also be happy to come and give concerts. 'With this organ, TivoliVredenburg will occupy a pioneering position', the Utrecht cultural colossus even proudly announces (see press release).

In an interview with Thea Derks, former director of Vredenburg Peter Smids called the lack of an organ 'ludicrous, as a self-respecting concert hall simply needs one'. Artistic director of the Residentie Orkest Roland Kieft is therefore unhappy: 'We are of course sorry, because we would have loved to have had an organ in the concert hall, but with the available budget choices had to be made and other things took priority.' So the reason for the omission is a simple question of money. The construction of Vredenburg Music Centre in the 1970s was also all about pennies.

Whether the ChristenUnie-SGP party leader is really worried about a concert hall with an organ remains to be seen.'I do not opt for an extremely expensive palace of culture', he shouts on his party's website. And in the vision of the city he unfolds there, you won't find the word culture anywhere. Yet his organ stance makes sense, as the reactions from concert hall and orchestra above show.

Finally, for enthusiasts: at the opening of The Concertgebouw in Amsterdam on 11 April 1888, the organ was also the "widely regretted absentee". Thanks to a lottery, it later came after all.