cello

The Musical Instrument Fund acquired this cello in 2011. The dealer who had the cello on consignment approached the Musical Instrument Fund, knowing that the preservation of cultural heritage is one of the foundation’s objectives. Most cellos from Hendrik Jacobs’ workshop were built by his student and collaborator, Pieter Rombouts. This cello, however, is clearly the work of the master himself and is therefore extremely rare! The cello has likely always been in the Netherlands. We know, at any rate, that it was purchased in The Hague in 1910 by a wealthy private individual, who bought it for his son. The son had to stop playing at a relatively early age due to rheumatism. The cello remained in the family and was played again in the mid-1960s by one of the grandsons of the original player. He played it for about fifteen years. Starting in 1980, the owner consistently loaned the cello to young students, the last of whom was studying at the conservatory in The Hague. Since no one in the family played the cello anymore, the decision was made to sell it in 2010. The Musical Instrument Fund organized sound tests with top musicians. These tests revealed that the Jacobs possesses excellent tonal qualities. The Musical Instrument Fund loaned the cello to the young Harriet Krijgh, who, playing the Jacobs, won the cello competition at the Cellobiennale in Amsterdam in 2012. Krijgh’s career blossomed into an international solo career. When Harriet Krijgh received a very valuable antique Italian cello on loan from a private individual in 2013, the Jacobs was returned to the Musical Instrument Fund. Since then, the cello has been played by Bas Jongen.