History

International Holland Music Sessions (IHMS) has existed since 1988. This foundation was established at the initiative of the Alkmaar Conservatoire. What began as a summer course has grown into a complete institute. Young talents get the chance to be in the spotlight. It is a nice stepping stone for the rest of their careers.

Personal details

Perry Reitsma, our director, together with his team of coordinators and a committed board, ensure IHMS' continued success. They each have their own tasks. Together with all the volunteers, they ensure that everything runs smoothly.
There is also a circle of advisors around IHMS who support us in word and deed. Finally, there are a number of well-known former participants who support us as ambassadors.

Alumni

Every summer we welcome new young top talents to our Summer Academy & Festival. During this period, they develop their professional skills with top teachers. Since 1988, they have formed a treasure on which we can build further.
Well-known Dutch musicians such as Liza Ferschtman, Paolo Giacometti, Quirine Viersen and the Storioni Trio, as well as renowned foreign musicians such as Nicholas Angelich, Andrey Baranov, Leonard Elschenbroich, Miroslav Kultychev, the Lendvai String Trio, Gavriel Lipkind, Maria Milstein, Alice Sara Ott, the Sitkovetsky Trio, Pavel Sporcl and Antoine Tamestit were invited to present themselves to the public at the beginning of their careers.
Later winners of major international competitions were also discovered by IHMS and invited to give concerts in the Royal Concertgebouw and other important national and international concert halls.

We are happy to share the names of our alumni with you.

Annual report

Good governance also means accountability and transparency. That is why we draw up an annual report every year, which includes the annual accounts. In it, the board provides insight into the management of IHMS. You can read about our goals, our policy and what we do in terms of PR and communication. The latter is essential to our success. In addition, the annual accounts show the financial ups and downs. Are you curious about the organisation behind the foundation? Then these annual reports are certainly interesting to read. You can view all annual reports from 2014.

Multiannual plan

The first years of this decade we went through a difficult period, both organisationally and financially. Thanks to the efforts of many volunteers and the financial support of the circle members, the tide has turned again. This allowed us to look ahead again. Since 2015 we have drawn up multi-year plans, most recently for the period 2019-2021.