Youth choir festival

Thea Bakker / choral conductor
Thea Bakker studied church music, choral conducting and singing at the Utrecht Conservatoire, with piano and organ as subsidiary subjects. During and after her studies, she specialised in children's choral singing, solo singing and choral conducting during master classes at home and abroad. She is currently taking vocal lessons according to the Lichtenberger® Method, the Klankwerk course and a choral conducting course. As a conductor and specialist in voice training, she is associated with various choirs. She also teaches in her own vocal practice and at the Vocal School Utrecht, which she founded, where she offers children the opportunity to make high-level vocal music.

Aimée Hautvast / choral conductor
Soprano Aimée Hautvast obtained her bachelor's and master's degrees in classical singing with flying colours at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, where she was taught by Maria Acda-Maas, Frans Fiselier and Catrin Wyn-Davis, among others. She took master classes with renowned musicians such as Nelly Miricioiu, Barbrø Marklund, Jane Irwin, Rosemary Joshua and Eva-Maria Westbroek. Hautvast performed at home and abroad as a soloist and choir member in several opera productions and performed as a choir member with the Groot Omroepkoor accompanied by the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. In doing so, she worked with renowned conductors such as Bernard Haitink and Giancarlo Andretta. Hautvast also teaches classical singing and is a choral conductor at KunstenHuis Idea.

Janneke Moes / choral conductor
Janneke Moes studied voice, conducting and composition at HKU Utrechts Conservatorium, with piano as a minor. As a singer and conductor, she was associated with various vocal ensembles and in countries including the Netherlands, Finland and France. Moes has a great passion for singing and getting people to sing together and is convinced that singing together promotes well-being and a healthy society. She is currently the conductor of, among others, Jong MusiCanta, a youth vocal ensemble for talented young people between 12 and 21 with whom she performs classical repertoire and world music.

Matthijs Overmars / piano
Matthijs Overmars studied school music and choral conducting at the Utrecht Conservatory. During his studies, he and four fellow students founded the a cappella group Intermezzo, which grew into a professional and internationally acclaimed vocal ensemble with its own concept and signature.
In recent years, Overmars worked as a choral conductor, teacher of music, choral singing, handicrafts and flute making at the Zeister Free School. Earlier, he was also associated with Academy De Wervel, Hogeschool Helicon, the Zeister Kamerkoor and as a teacher at the multi-year conductor training programme of the Utrecht Centre for the Arts. In 2010, he started the project children's choir Spring.

KunstenHuis Idea / Markt 3 / 3701 JZ Zeist