The News: a video-opera by Jacob ter Veldhuis; Nederlands Blazers Ensemble, two singers and film UrWald: new music-theatre by Arnoud Noordegraaf; Niewe Amsterdams Peil Ensemble, actor and film Muziekgebow aan 't IJ, Amsterdam (October 2013)

Extract

The Amsterdam contemporary music scene has long been known for its open-mindedness and willingness to explore, and any given evening can be a toss-up between electronic clog dance (served with soup) or piano-playing dogs. A petri dish of creativity, this is given a podium and a voice by the Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ. This edifice of concrete and glass, moored like an industrial spaceship on the banks of the river IJ, is branded in English as the ‘Concert Hall of the twenty-first century’, and indeed their flavourful mix of programming celebrates the more unusual sides of classical music, from the very old to the very new, from Gesualdo consorts to dirty electronics.