The ‘new’ online archive

In addition to our new website, the Huygens-Fokker Foundation has an extensive online archive, which largely consists of the contents of the former website that had been online since 2008. Although the design of this old website is now somewhat dated, it contains a wealth of information about microtonal music and alternative tunings. For that reason, this online archive remains an essential part of the information resources of the Huygens-Fokker Foundation. The archive serves as a valuable reference work for anyone wishing to explore the theoretical background of microtonality. Those who wish to delve deeper into this subject will find here a rich collection of substantive contributions in the form of articles on tunings and microtonal music. Unlike the online archive, the new website of the foundation is primarily aimed at the current audience of our Fokker organ concerts, including a clear events calendar, information for collaborative partners, and concise introductions to various tone systems for music professionals who are still orienting themselves in this fascinating musical field. The combination with the content of our old website enables us to preserve articles from the past and to keep them accessible in the future. >Visit the online archive here.<.

More news

Fokker-organ during Sonic Acts

Fokker-organ during Sonic Acts

The Fokker organ can be heard on 24 February at Sonic Acts. This festival explores, provides context and presents the most exciting new work by renowned and emerging visual and sound artists. Expect an audiovisual rollercoaster: adventurous, experimental, innovative...

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Meet Christiaan Huygens!

Meet Christiaan Huygens!

Ever wanted to meet Christiaan Huygens? On the morning of 5 March you’ll have your chance! Huygens’ most relevant work in relation to music, Le Cycle Harmonique (1691), is a concise mathematical treatise in which he named the 31-tone system as the most excellent of...

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New documentary about Leo de Vries

New documentary about Leo de Vries

On 9 October 2022 at 11:00 a.m., a documentary about Leo de Vries (1924–2018) will be shown at the Muziekgebouw in Amsterdam (and afterwards online), made by Sharis Coppens and Sander Germanus on behalf of the Huygens-Fokker Foundation. De Vries was a violinist,...

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The 31-tone organ during the Pärt Festival

The 31-tone organ during the Pärt Festival

The great organ talent Laurens de Man highlights in this concert a fairly unknown side of Arvo Pärt. In Pärt’s oeuvre the organ serves mainly as an accompanying instrument for vocal music, but in the 1980s he also composed a series of works for solo organ. Laurens de...

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Sweelinck Festival and the Fokker organ

Sweelinck Festival and the Fokker organ

This special Fokker organ concert is part of the Sweelinck Festival, which takes place between 16 and 25 October 2021 at various locations in Amsterdam in honour of the 400th anniversary of the death of the great Dutch composer who lived in the Koestraat in Amsterdam....

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The concert Laboratonium 4 is online

The concert Laboratonium 4 is online

The fourth edition of the Laboratonium is also centred around experiments with (micro)tones – now as an online concert due to the lockdown. New works by both young and established composers can be heard, with the Fokker organ often being controlled by computer. This...

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New moderator for the Carrillo piano

New moderator for the Carrillo piano

The Carrillo piano, the 96-tone piano of the Huygens-Fokker Foundation, is equipped with a moderator. Unlike some other 96-tone pianos, the Carrillo piano of the Huygens-Fokker Foundation does not have a third (moderator) pedal but a manual moderator that can be...

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Bruckner in meantone tuning

Bruckner in meantone tuning

During this Fokker organ concert at the Ongehoord Bruckner festival at the Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ, the romantic works of the renowned composer Anton Bruckner (1824–1896) are performed in meantone tuning – a feat that is only possible on the 31-tone organ. Enhanced...

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Andriessen on the 31-tone organ

Andriessen on the 31-tone organ

How does Andriessen sound on the 31-tone organ? In the oeuvre of Louis Andriessen, the organ does not occupy a prominent place: only one organ work bears his name. He composed De goddelijke routine—a typically Andriessen title—for the 125th birthday of his father,...

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Speakers above the Fokker organ

Speakers above the Fokker organ

In the summer of 2018, the Huygens-Fokker Foundation had four high-quality, identical QSC speakers installed just above the Fokker organ in the Kleine Zaal of the Muziekgebouw in Amsterdam. This digital enhancement makes it possible to supplement the organ with...

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Ligeti and Nancarrow on Fokker organ

Ligeti and Nancarrow on Fokker organ

Especially for this concert, Ere Lievonen, the regular performer of the Fokker organ, arranged piano and harpsichord works by György Ligeti for the unique 31-tone organ. In addition, the programme pays attention to the composer Conlon Nancarrow, admired by Ligeti, who...

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Fokker organ at Amsterdam Uitmarkt

Fokker organ at Amsterdam Uitmarkt

Experience the unique sounds of the Fokker organ. The programme features a variety of works, each highlighting a different aspect of the repertoire of this extraordinary 31-tone organ. Henk Badings’ composition is one of the very first works written for this...

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Ensemble SCALA plays minimal music

Ensemble SCALA plays minimal music

In the rectangular space of the Kleine Zaal at the top of the Muziekgebouw, a concert will take place featuring (post)minimal movements and galactic overtone sounds. With sweeping views over the broad IJ, you can enjoy the microtones of Ensemble SCALA and the Fokker...

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Fokker organ 65 years!

Fokker organ 65 years!

In 2015, it was 65 years since the Fokker organ was built by organ builder Pels, after which it found a home in the Teylers Museum in Haarlem. This unique organ has now reached a retirement age, yet the 31-tone music that can be played on the instrument is more alive...

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ANBI status for Huygens-Fokker

ANBI status for Huygens-Fokker

Since January 2014, the Huygens-Fokker Foundation has held the status of a cultural ANBI (Public Benefit Organisation). This means that donations to the Huygens-Fokker Foundation are tax-deductible. As a donor or sponsor, you can give in a fiscally advantageous way...

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Huygens’ year: concert Ensemble SCALA

Huygens’ year: concert Ensemble SCALA

In celebration of the Huygens Year, Ensemble SCALA will perform in the Grote Kerk in The Hague on Sunday 7 July 2013 at 14:00. The concert will feature a small ensemble of flute, viola, and Fokker organ (using the portable Fokker organ keyboard) performing works in...

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Purchase of a new microtonal piano

Purchase of a new microtonal piano

Since mid-January 2011, the Huygens-Fokker Foundation has been the proud owner of a remarkable instrument: the Carrillo piano, also known as the 96-tone piano or 1/16-tone piano. This microtonal piano, developed in the 1950s by the Mexican composer Julián Carrillo in...

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A Second Life for the Fokker organ

A Second Life for the Fokker organ

Organ music can be performed on many different instruments. But in Amsterdam, there is an organ so unique that music composed specifically for it cannot be performed anywhere else. This is because it has not twelve, but 31 tones per octave. On Sunday 17 May, following...

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