Hanseatic Current | Diary of a Hanseatic Merchant

''I am Hendrik Pieterszoon Schuyt, but just say Dirk. I was born in 1490. Even as a child I wanted to be part of something bigger, a circle of friends, an alliance.''

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So begins the diary of Hanseatic merchant Hendrick Pieterszoon Schuyt, written by artistic director and countertenor Sytse Buwalda and actor Alfred van den Heuvel. Using this fictional diary, The Nederlands Bach Consort brings history back to life. Ancient and contemporary music connect the past with the present. An exciting story of betrayal, love perils, camaraderie and blood spatter in which the music follows the story closely. Beautiful music of which some pieces have never been performed in the Netherlands!

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Following the Hanseatic ideology, Het Nederlands Bach Consort commissioned tenor and composer William Knight to compose a piece of music based on the text of a folk song from the 16th century that could once be heard in the streets of Zwolle, Harderwijk, Deventer and Doesburg, for example. In doing so, we connect the past with the present through music.

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Get carried away by "Hanseatic Current. A unique musical performance in which fortunately there is also plenty of room for laughter. Leave that to Hendrick Pieterszoon Schuyt!

''A little later I discovered that my hometown was part of a great union: the Hanseatic League! Brilliant concept! A brotherhood of cities, beyond language and national boundaries, supporting and protecting each other. I sailed from Zwolle to Rostock and beyond, brought cloth and wood and rye from London to Novgorod and returned with fish and skins and iron! I smelled unknown smells and forged friendships forever. I was happy!''
H.P. Schuyt