WIE IS ESTHER?

QUOTES/AANBEVELINGEN OVER ESTHER:

Esther makes the viola stand out and worthy as a solo instrument. She’s able to draw everyone in, young and old, classical music connoisseurs and curious explorers of new and exciting music. Her sound is warm and rich and a feast to the ear. It’s fascinating how Esther can make little tweaks and modifications to make you, the audience, listen and discover new sounds and exciting opportunities within well-known musical compositions. Esther challenges you as a listener and you want to close your eyes and join her musical journey. 

Dolph Hogewoning Consul-General United States

 I have known Esther Apituley now for more than 12 years as not only an exceptionally gifted musician with her viola, but also as an artist who is multi talented and strongly connected to the society around her. She therefore is not “ just” a good player of the violin but A musician who turns every performance into a magnificent event with a broad scope of musical history and taste.

Jan Hoekema, former MP, Ambassador for international cultural cooperation and mayor of Wassenaar

Listening to the music Esther Apituley is playing is not only a joy because she is an outstanding musician, but also because of the fact that she has the peculiar habit to model old music into a sound our modern ears love to listen to. And Esther brings classical music to a broader audience in a fresh way.

Job Cohen served as Mayor of Amsterdam for 9 years and as Leader of the Labour Party (PvdA) from 2010 to 2012

Esther is an innovative and utterly creative musical talent who is not afraid of addressing new paths towards making classical music accessible to broad audiences around the world. She has a nose for other talented artists from a.o. the United States who complement her in her mission to deeply involve those audiences in her love for music in general and classical music in particular. In these ties and age it is of the utmost importance we acknowledge the fact we are in it together and Esther is one of those persons who can bring people with different backgrounds and seemingly different tastes together by introducing her artistic craftsmanship in a new and spellbinding way. 

Sophie Lambo Business Director Het Zuidelijk Toneel, a major theatre companie in the Netherlands and Flaunders President, Treasurer and Member of several Boards of cultural entities

Biography Esther Apituley, Viola /Violin/Artistic Creator

Esther Apituley is in the Netherlands well known as a musician who has developed a unique way to bring the power of the classical repertoire into a dialogue with the here and now. By combining classical music with other disciplines and theatrical themes, she brings a surprising and occasionally anarchic twist to classical composition. The result is a more illustrative performance which makes the works of the great composers accessible to a wide audience and turns an ordinary concert into an unforgettable experience. She is regular invited to radio and tv programs.

Solo with Orchestras/ Chamber Music

Esther Apituley is a gifted chamber music performer. She played for years in the Amsterdam String Trio and her own Amsterdam Viola Quartet, as well as in various chamber music ensembles such as the Borodin Quartet. They played over the whole world. She has performed as a soloist with the National Ballet Orchestra, the North- Holland Philharmonic, the Metropole Orchestra, and the Radio Chamber Orchestra. Her performances included the viola concerts from Berlioz, Bartok, and Chiel Meijering; Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante, and Britten’s Lachrymae. In Vilnius she played Bartok with the Lithuania Symphony Orchestraand in Jakarta with the big Symphonie Orchestra the Telemann Concert.

Masterclasses

Esther was a viola teacher on the High School of Music in Amsterdam for years. On a regular basis, she is asked to give master classes and play in chamber music festivals in the Netherlands and abroad.  Master classes at the International Music festival in Campos do Jordao in Brazil in 2015, 2016, 2017. In Sweden she gave a big masterclasses for all string teachers of Scandinavia.

Viola Viola Festival

In 2012 and 2014, a three-day event, called the Haarlem Viola Viola Festival, was held in the Netherlands. The festival aims to break with the traditional presentation of the ‘classical concert’. In order to reach a wider audience, it takes an innovative approach and lowers thresholds by using various disciplines and soloists like dancers, whistlers, and hip-hop dancers. The festival was such a success that it has evolved into a traveling music festival. During the 2015 – 2016 season it ran as Esther Apituley’s Locomotive, performing Viola Viola Festival’s highlights. Working with local choirs and youth orchestras, components of the Viola Viola Festival were performed in various cities of the Netherlands.

Lecture Concerts

In addition, Esther regularly performs as a soloist with her Lecture Concert, which goes beyond just listening. She talks about her passion for music and explains, why a particular note can sound so beautiful and different on the viola compared to the violin.

Together with internationally renowned neurologist Dick Swaab and philosopher Stine Jensen, she offers musical lectures at many museums and universities, such as the StedelijkMuseum (Municipal Museum) in Amsterdam and Teylers’ Museum in Haarlem.

CD

Esther Apituley has released three CDs on the Challenge label. The first two are titled Violent Viola and Viola Viola. In 2016, her latest CD, Stirring Stills, Bach for solo viola, was released to much acclaim on March 24, Bach’s birthday. Concertzender announced this CD as the best Bach CD in 2017.

Theaterconcerts

Following a highly successful run, the main performance of the 2016-2017 season, Bach & Bleach (Bach & Bleekwater), will be extended and performed in many theaters and concert halls all over the Netherlands and abroad. For instance in Spain and New York she played Bach & Bleach for two weeks with big success and great reviews.

After the Bach & Bleach, she realized other Music Theatre Concerts; 2018 Vivaldi Code Rood, 2019- 2020 Beethoven Lost in Silence, 2021- 2022 de Sprong van Njinsky in cooperation with Scapino Ballet, and 2023-2024 Philip Glass; Songs & Poems, Tissues & Issues. All these performances had great reviews.