March, 2021: Symphony No. 5 / Paul van Kempen / Concertgebouw Orchestra

This rare recording from the Dutch Archives dates back to March 13, 1941 and a controversial one... Van Kempen (1893-1955) was born in Zoeterwoude, Netherlands. He studied at the Amsterdam conservatory from 1910 to 1913, including composition and conducting with Julius Roentgen and Bernard Zweers. From 1913, he was a second violinist with the Concertgebouw Orchestra. One year later, he was in the first violin section. After 1916, he began to make his career more in Germany, and served as concertmaster in orchestras in Posen, Bad Nauheim und Dortmund. In 1932, Van Kempen became a German citizen. Van Kempen was music director in Oberhausen for 2 years. From 1934 to 1942, he was principal conductor of the Dresden Philharmonic. In 1942, he succeeded Herbert von Karajan as Kapellmeister in Aachen, serving through 1944. Several years after World War II, in 1953, Van Kempen became general music director of the city of Bremen. In 1949, Van Kempen returned to the Netherlands as principal conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, based in Hilversum. As one can imagine, his conducting activities during World War II (including concerts given for the Wehrmacht) made him a controversial figure in the Netherlands. On one occasion, in 1951, Van Kempen was engaged as a substitute conductor at the Concertgebouw Orchestra in place of the ill Eduard van Beinum. During the first night, audience members protested strongly, but the concert took place. On the second night, the audience disruptions were so severe that 62 musicians left the stage and refused to continue. Van Kempen is known for his Telefunken recording of the Bruckner Symphony No. 4 with the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic. This recording of the Symphony No. 5 dates from March 3, 1941 and comes from a Dutch Radio broadcast at that time.