Wim Diepenhorst

Wim Diepenhorst (1971) began playing the organ at the age of six. He studied organ and church music at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. At the same time, he studied musicology at Utrecht University, where he specialized in the history and technique of organ building in the Netherlands. After completing his organ studies cum laude, he was for several years a teacher of organ, organ building and improvisation at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, succeeding his teacher Hans van Nieuwkoop. He advised on behalf of the Organ Committee of the Nederlands Hervormde Kerk on various restorations of historic organs and was involved as a content editor in the publication of the imposing encyclopedia Het historische orgel in Nederland. In 2003 he became organ specialist of the Rijksdienst voor het Cultureel Erfgoed. In that capacity he assesses restoration and maintenance plans for monumental organs, supervises restorations, and carries out research into special restoration themes such as the corrosion of lead organ pipes. Wim Diepenhorst often performs together with the well-known vocal ensemble Cappella Pratensis, with which he has made several CD recordings. In 2007 he won the first prize of the Hinsz Composition Competition in Kampen. As an organ specialist, he advised on the construction of the symphonic Verschueren organ and the medieval organ built by Reil for the Orgelpark in Amsterdam.