Mixed youth choir Leiden orphanage

This resident of Leiden was a private music teacher, either from the Southern Netherlands (the present Belgium) or France.

The progress made in the first few months was so much to the satisfaction of the trustees, that they decided to establish the choir (the ‘Zangcollege’ or ‘Zanginstituut’) officially on 19 April 1796.

From the end of 1797, the choir faced a period of decline, mainly due to the worsening economic situation of the Batavian Republic as a whole and of the institution in particular.

The trustees also saw participation in the choir as partly a recreational activity, which was quite a remarkable idea in view of the rather austere circumstances of parentless children in Dutch society.

Probably the best known of these poets is Hieronymus van Alphen (1746-1803) who by this time had written his famous poems for children, some of which were set by Ruppe and in the years 1822-1830 published.

The pieces can be seen in the light of the vocal music from the time of the ‘godsdienstige zanggenootschappen’, so called religious choral societies, which existed in the Netherlands in the years (1790) 1800-1820.

[6] The music manuscripts of the works made for the choral societies of The Hague, Rotterdam, Middelburg and other towns in the Netherlands are believed to be lost.

The manuscripts of the Christmas and Easter music for the Leiden orphan choir are among the few documents preserved from the above-mentioned period that give evidence of this national phenomenon.

Given the charitable character of the ‘zanggenootschap’ concerts it is very likely that this was one of the ways the church attempted to accrue additional funds.

That they chose this way of generating funds is quite remarkable given the period with its turmoil and social and economic unrest.

Before and after the Christmas Cantata (Ruppe had composed adjuncting parts) the former Middelburg pastor Johannes Hendricus van der Palm (1763-1840) had given an instructive sermon.

In his sermon, this new Leiden Professor had rhetorically asked those attending if Jesus himself would approve less of hearing music sung by the needy (the ‘behoeftigen’).

In the Hooglandse Kerk, the immense church building in the immediate vicinity of the orphanage, the singing orphans together with the sound of horns, trumpets, violins and kettledrums chosen by composer Christian Ruppe must have surely made a lasting impression.