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The Dutch bass-baritone, Noël Casteleyn, started as a singer in a boys' choir in Goes. A rare world in a Catholic tradition. From the age of 5 to the age of 16 he sang there almost every day. Gregorian chant, sacred and secular music, musicals and operas, it all passed by. He earned his first solos in classical works, but also in the roles Oliver Twist and Puss in Boots. He sang with this choir at beautiful locations conducted by Evert Heijblok, including: Salzburg Cathedral, Cologne Cathedral and Westminster Cathedral in London. This great musical life has inspired him to sing for a lifetime. It has shaped him and brought focus to what singing is and what it can and can be. It was his conservatory at a young age. As a boy he lost my 'alto instrument' and was very excited what came back for it.
At the age of 16 Noël Casteleyn's voice broke and his voice developed as a bass-baritone. Since then he has been part of various small ensembles in the field of chamber music. He received coaching and support from Jan Heije and Wendy Roobol. He is regularly invited to various choirs and other concert venues and he can now look back on: Christ and arias J.S. Bach's Johannes-Passion (BWV 245); Christ in J.S. Bach's Matthäus-Passion (BWV 244) and Lukas-Passion (BWV 246); Christ in J.G. Kühnhausen and J.V. Meder's Matthäus-Passion; and Stainer's The Crucifixion; on aria parts in cantatas by a.o.: J.S. Bach, Dietrich Buxtehude and Heinrich Schütz; and on the oratorio including: César Franck's Die Sieben Worte Jesu am Kreuz, Franz Liszt's Die Seligpreisungen, Camille Saint-Saëns' Oratorio de Noël, J. Haydn's Stabat Mater, Gabriel Fauré's Requiem, Johannes Brahms' Ein Deutsches Requiem, W.A. Mozart's Requiem, and more.
Noël Casteleyn is a part of two ensembles that can be heard regularly in the Netherlands. Vocaal ensemble The Gents is a unique company in the Netherlands that has quickly established itself as a prominent place in the international music world. The Gents is widely praised for its special sound, the great degree of flexibility and the unparalleled interpretation of a wide variety of mainly a-cappella repertoire. The audience is surprised by a very distinctive and clear choral sound with warm bass sounds as a foundation and the sparkling voices of the countertenors in the heights. The repertoire ranges from renaissance to romanticism, pop and jazz. The Gents sing it with verve. Ensemble Lyrico consists of very experienced and passionate musicians: 4 singers, a gambist and harpsichordist/organist. Lyrico was founded in 2018 by the soprano Lucia van Vugt. The ensemble plays and sings works from the Renaissance and Baroque and finds it challenging to perform lesser-known works from this period. |
