Prominent Utrechters talking about their favourite spot in the city. This month: Jan Hage, organist in the Domkerk, tells us about Beatrixpark near Lunetten.
So… Beatrixpark?
‘I live in the Lunetten neighbourhood and I go for a walk in this park every day to relax and clear my head. I particularly love it at this time of year, when everything’s so beautiful. I’m also interested in the ‘lunetten’ – the historic, crescent-shaped defences. I like to listen to lectures about history and culture on the Home Academy podcast while I’m walking. They relax me and I always learn something from them!’
Biggest let-down?
‘I’m reluctant to say this, but I think it’s a pity that the Protestant Theological University, where I was awarded my PhD in 2016, is building a lecture hall in the Janskerk. I’ve been accompanying the Schola Davidica choir in the nave of this church for years. It’s a fabulous, open space, but the new lecture hall meant we had to move to the Nicolaïkerk. It’s a really lovely place, but the organ there is less suited to the romantic 19th-century music that we perform. Every organ has its own character, and the one in the Nicolaïkerk has a clear, crisp sound that isn’t quite right for this type of music.’
Guilty pleasure?
‘It’s only a minor one, but when I bike home from the Domkerk on a sunny day, I sometimes can’t resist stopping at the terrace of De Poort on Ledig Erf for an Affligem Blond beer. My job at the Domkerk is fairly intense; I have to go there almost every day for meetings, services, concerts or to practise. And there’s been music in the church on Saturday afternoons for almost 50 years, including a monthly organ concert. I also give concerts in other places, and on 1 November, I’ll realise my dream of playing in the Nôtre Dame in Paris, where I studied.’
Best memory?
‘When the Tour de France came to Utrecht in 2015, I accompanied a group of spinners in the Domkerk with dynamic music like Bach. It provided a sort of spiritual stimulation, and we made national television news. I do my utmost to introduce people to organ music. Everyone thinks it’s a serious, church instrument, but psalms aren’t the only thing you can play on an organ. It helps that the Domkerk is open every day. It’s in the heart of the city, and everyone is welcome, even just for a moment of peace, spirituality or mysticism.’
Last performance or concert you visited?
‘A concert by the Radio Philharmonic Orchestra in TivoliVredenburg, where the weekly AVROTROS Friday Concerts are held. The orchestra played Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony, conducted by the American conductor Karina Kannelakis, who is a real talent. She’s been making a name for herself and is incredibly energetic: she always gives 100% and is being invited as a guest conductor all around the world. A woman on the conductor’s rostrum was unthinkable 30 years ago, but emancipation really seems to have reached the world of conductors.’
Moved to tears?
‘That doesn’t happen very often, but it was on a car journey to France with a friend. We were listening to Bach’s Cantates. Bach is complicated, complex, and yet everything falls into place. The music is impossible to comprehend, so magnificent that you reach a state of ecstasy, you’re transported to the cosmos so to speak. But I’m also a huge fan of contemporary organ music by Louis Andriessen, for example, and Olivier Messiaen. I enjoy new styles, unfamiliar compositions. I’m one of the few organists who champion this cause.’
In July and August, Jan Hage is organising free organ concerts in the Domkerk every Saturday afternoon: De Zomerorgelserie.
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Over dit artikel
text:
Sarah-Mie Luyckx
images:
© Juri Hiensch
Publication date:
3 July 2026
Magazine edition:
UITagenda Utrecht jul/aug 2026
