Mathilde Wantenaar schreef ‘Een lied voor de maan', voor kinderen vanaf 6 jaar. Photo by Maartje Geels.
You really don't need to make concessions when composing for children, Mathilde Wantenaar believes. Her children's opera Een lied voor de maan, based on a story by Toon Tellegen, will premiere on Sunday.
What children's songs did she used to listen to herself? Composer Mathilde Wantenaar (27) has to think about that for a moment. ‘We always had a house full of music. My mother is a singing teacher, my father plays accordion. We mainly made music together, where I would sing, and a bit later play along on my guitar or cello. But children's songs from the past? Oh yes, we sang a lot from the songbook Ja Zuster, Nee Zuster songs by Annie M.G. Schmidt and Harry Bannink.’
The question seems important for someone who has written an opera for children as young as 6. Because isn't it true that as a composer, you then have to immerse yourself in the world of children? Including all those songs?
