Duo Pleyel Previews of Vrij Denken (Free Thinking)
Discover composers who have liberated themselves and/or music. What does 'liberated music' sound like? You will discover this during this edition of the Museum Pleyel Series. Together with the young, talented pianist Jian Lim (9 years old!) and contralto Jessica Stakenburg, various songs and pieces will be performed with freedom as the common thread. This is especially intended as a warm-up for the exhibition *Vrij Denken (Free Thinking): How the ideas of Luther and Erasmus changed the world*!
Songs and musical pieces with freedom as a theme resound on the beautiful Blöthner from 1900. Do you want to buy your ticket immediately? Then click on this link!
Who or what is Duo Pleyel?
Duo Pleyel is named after their beautiful Pleyel piano from 1848. The duo consists of pianists Alexandra Nepomnyashchaya and Richard Egarr. Together, they have been dedicated for nine years to making the rich and captivating repertoire for piano four-hands accessible to a wider audience. They would like to offer varied programs, ranging from the earliest music of Johann Christian Bach and Mozart, and lesser-known early Romantics such as Hummel and Dussek, to the great popular works of Fauré, Debussy, Ravel, and Stravinsky from the twentieth century.
Which young talent is joining this concert?
Discover Jian Lim, the talented 9-year-old pianist!
Jian is nine and he is absolutely crazy about the piano and chess. Since he was born, he has heard his father and his older sister playing the piano, and he was naturally drawn to music. He started playing the piano himself from the age of three.
By the time he was five, he had learned the first three parts of the Russian Piano School entirely on his own. After that, he worked his way through the Goldberg Variations, Beethoven's sonatas, more Bach, Tchaikovsky, and other composers piece by piece. At the age of seven, he was admitted to the Sweelinck Academy by special exception – as one of the youngest students ever. He is still discovering music from all eras in his own way, and he loves to improvise and create his own variations.
Also discover who Jessica Stakenburg is, the contralto!
Jessica Stakenburg (1996) is a Dutch contralto from Dordrecht. After her acting training, she studied Classical Music Theatre at Fontys and continued her studies at the International Opera Academy in Ghent. She is coached by her regular coach Xenia Meijer and, more recently, by soprano Eva-Maria Westbroek. Jessica participated in productions by, among others, the Dutch National Opera, Opera Ballet Vlaanderen, Muziektheater Hollands Diep, and the Savonlinna Opera Festival. During the 2025–2026 season, she was a soloist with the young ensemble of Opera Ballet Vlaanderen. Here, she appeared as Blumenmödchen and Knappe in Wagner’s Parsifal, as Alisa in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, and in Brewaey’s L’Uomo dal fiore in bocca. Additionally, she covered the roles of Fenena in Nabucco and the Old Nun in Hindemith's Sancta Susanna. Previously, she sang solo roles in Aufstieg und Fall der Stadt Mahagonny (directed by Ivo van Hove) and Beethoven's Ninth Symphony with the Hanze Orchestra. After her participation in the IVC 's-Hertogenbosch, she was frequently invited as an alto soloist on Bach op Zaterdag. In 2025, she won the Willy Caron Award, after which she performed as a guest artist on Viva Classic Live on national television. In 2026, her field of work expanded further internationally. After her performances in Wagner's Parsifal at the Wiener Festwochen, she reached the semi-finals of the Sumi Jo International Singing Competition in France. While her Händel was praised in the Baroque repertoire, her performance as Erda (Das Rheingold) garnered glowing reviews from the French press, which lauded her "round, spacious, and golden voice," breath support, and great stage authority. Subsequently, she stayed at the Bayreuther Festspiele as a scholarship recipient.
What is on the program? I am curious about independent composers!
The program features various composers, including some less well-known and performed composers, so it is definitely worth it!
Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony No. 9, Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso (and may be sung along!)
Amy Beach – The Rainy Day
In the Twilight (op. 85, no. 2)
Jessica Stakenburg - Contralto
Serge Prokofiev – nos. 1/3/8/10/11 from ‘Visions fugitives, Op. 22’
Introducing Young Artist
Jian Lim (9) - Piano
Ethel Smyth – Requies (Three Moods of the Sea, No. 1)
After Sunset (Three Moods of the Sea, No. 3)
Jessica Stakenburg - Contralto
L. van Beethoven - Symphony 9, Adagio molto e cantabile; Andante moderato
Joni Mitchell - The Fiddle and the Drum
Bob Dylan - Blowin in the Wind
Jessica Stakenburg - Contralto
