When art is offered at such a high level, you can also expect value to be placed on it.

First of all, I would like to thank everyone who made it possible for me to receive the Dutch Music Prize here today. Not only to all the people who have helped me during the years of my career and given me so much inspiration and motivation, but also to everyone who has supported me in my musical development from a very young age. Moreover, I am very grateful to all the people who have worked extremely hard behind the scenes over the last few weeks to make this concert possible today. There were moments of great uncertainty, so I greatly admire the dedication and patience of everyone who has contributed to making this concert possible.

Over the past two years, within the Dutch Music Prize trajectory, I have been given the means to take concrete steps to translate ideas I had been working on in the back of my mind for a long time into reality. I intend to continue this development myself from now on. I therefore see the awarding of this prize as a sign of confidence, confidence to always continue developing myself as a musician, following my own vision.

Unreal

But I must honestly say that it does feel crazy to be standing here. It feels unreal to be able to receive a music award at this time, when the cultural world is faltering. I realise that I am in a privileged position to be given a stage here now and a chance to make my voice heard. Especially at a time when many musicians feel they are not being heard.

Ideally, during this concert, I would only occupy myself with making music. And I think I speak for all musicians when I say that we prefer to make our voices heard through music... Yet it often turns out that even a performance of great artistic quality is not enough to convince even politicians that art is essential. Indeed, ensembles across the Netherlands are measured against lists of specific qualifications that determine whether they are entitled to financial support. With the restrictive requirements in place, musicians are often forced to deny their own creative personality just to be allowed to stay in the system. This threatens to turn the cultural world into an unhealthy competition battle, when art has nothing at all to do with competition.

Diversity

In particular, the requirement of diversity proves decisive when deciding on grants that determine the survival of ensembles. However, as soon as diversity or originality becomes an end in itself, the result is precisely a very one-sided cultural life. When only 'hip', 'original' or diverse art is allowed to exist, the result is ultimately precisely not that diversity that is so frenetically sought. Only when all the diverse ways in which musicians use their creativity are given an equal right to exist, can there truly be a diverse cultural landscape. Moreover, striving for originality is not in itself a useful starting point, as all new things that emerge are inevitably and inextricably linked to our past. Instead of originality, authenticity would therefore be a better aspiration.

It often strikes me how poignant the contrast is between the public's admiration for performance on stage, and the constant fear for their own survival that meanwhile plays out behind the scenes at all ensembles. For instance, it is incomprehensible to me that while rehearsals for this project were in full swing, the shocking news was announced that both the Orchestra of the 18th Century and Cappella Amsterdam - despite a positive assessment - have received a negative advice from the Culture Council for their grant applications.

The silence of recent months

When art is offered at such a high level, you can also expect value to be attached to it. And not just by the loyal concert-goers, but also from above by the government, as a sign of appreciation for the quality that has been delivered time and again for years. For the cultural sector, therefore, much more subsidies should be made available than is currently the case. Indeed, these subsidies are indispensable for the creative survival of ensembles. Subsidies give them the freedom to continue focusing on what they excel in and what they stand out for, without a revenue model having to be the starting point.

Let me make one last comment before we get back to the music, which is, of course, what we are actually here for... The silence of the past three months has made me realise that the communication with an audience and the feeling of a live performance cannot be replaced by a live stream or a video recording. These are only inferior fallback solutions. I therefore sincerely hope that in the long run, attending special live concerts and performances will also be considered as essential by the government as full planes and having a beer on a terrace.

Good to know

Speech Lucie Horsch presentation of Dutch Music Prize at Holland Festival concert; Muziekgebouw Aan 't IJ, presentation on 7 June 2020, to be broadcast on 14 June 2020