Toggle navigation

Biography

Van Baerle Trio

The Van Baerle Trio was founded in 2004 by pianist Hannes Minnaar, violinist Maria Milstein and cellist Gideon den Herder. The trio takes its name from the street where it all started: Van Baerle Street, Amsterdam. The three musicians met there whilst studying at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, a stone‘s throw from the Concertgebouw, which they now consider their musical home.

The Van Baerle Trio was formed under the guidance of Dmitri Ferschtman and received lessons from Ferenc Rados and Claus-Christian Schuster, among others. Their encounter with Menahem Pressler in 2008 was a huge inspiration to the three musicians, who subsequently played for him on several occasions.

After winning the 2011 Vriendenkrans Competition in the Concertgebouw and performing there on numerous occasions since, the Van Baerle Trio was promoted by the Concertgebouw as ECHO Rising Stars 2013/14, a tour which took the trio to major venues across Europe, including Vienna‘s Musikverein, the London Barbican, Cité de la Musique in Paris, L‘Auditori in Barcelona and the Philharmonie in Cologne. The Van Baerle Trio had already established its international reputation, after being awarded top prizes at the ARD International Music Competition in Munich in 2013 and the Lyon International Chamber Music Competition in 2011, as well as receiving the audience prize at both contests, and winning the Kersjes Prize in 2012, the highest chamber music award in the Netherlands.

The Van Baerle Trio’s highly praised discography has featured a debut CD of works by Saint-Saëns, Loevendie and Ravel, which received an Edison Award in 2013. This was followed by an album dedicated to Mendelssohn’s piano trios, including the world premiere recording of the early version of his Piano Trio in D minor. Most recently the trio has recorded all the Beethoven piano trios, with the final disc, the Triple Concerto with the Residentie Orkest The Hague under the baton of Jan Willem de Vriend, released in Spring 2020.

Maria Milstein plays a violin by Michel Angelo Bergonzi and Gideon den Herder plays a cello by Giuseppe dall‘Aglio, both kindly on loan from the Dutch Musical Instruments Foundation.

Eager to share their experience with the next generation of musicians, members of the trio have been teaching at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam since 2014.

Download

Hannes Minnaar, Piano

Hannes Minnaar studied piano with Jan Wijn at the Amsterdam Conservatory, concluding his studies with distinction in 2009. Hannes won prizes at the Concours de Genève and the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels. He has performed as a soloist with various orchestras, including the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, deFilharmonie, and the National Orchestra of Belgium, under conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Eliahu Inbal, Marin Alsop and Frans Brüggen. Hannes was awarded a Fellowship by the Borletti-Buitoni Trust in 2011. His debut CD with works by Rachmaninoff and Ravel as well as his second CD "Bach Inspirations" were highly praised both in the Netherlands and abroad.

Maria Milstein, Violin

Maria Milstein studied violin with Ilya Grubert in Amsterdam, with David Takeno in London and with Augustin Dumay at the Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Brussels. Prizewinner of international competitions such as "Città di Brescia" and "Premio Rodolfo Lipizer", Maria appears as a soloist with a.o. the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, Essener Philharmoniker, the National Orchestra of Belgium and Residentie Orkest The Hague. Maria’s debut CD with Hanna Shybayeva received an Edison Award. Her second CD with Nathalia Milstein was chosen CD of the year by the Dutch press. Maria received a Fellowship by the Borletti Buitoni Trust and won the Dutch Music Prize, the highest award for a classical musician in the Netherlands. Maria plays a violin by Michel Angelo Bergonzi on loan from the Dutch Musical Instruments Foundation.

Gideon den Herder, Cello

Gideon den Herder studied cello with Monique Bartels in Amsterdam and Clemens Hagen in Salzburg, where he gained his master‘s diploma with distinction. He completed his training with Thomas Grossenbacher in Zürich, gaining there his Soloist‘s Diploma. He has also studied baroque cello with Jaap ter Linden and Roel Dieltiens. Gideon den Herder was named Young Music Talent of the Year in 2003; with the Trio Otono he won the "À Tre" early music competition in Trossingen, Germany in 2009. Since 2014, Gideon is principal cellist of the Residentie Orkest The Hague, with whom he appeared as a soloist on several occasions. He plays a cello by Giuseppe dall‘Aglio, kindly on loan to him from the Dutch Musical Instruments Foundation.