The Royal Conservatoire has appointed cellist and composer Jörg Ulrich Krah as the new Head of its Classical Department. He will take up the position on 1 September 2026, succeeding Rob Broek, who has led the department through the interim period with great dedication and artistic vision.
Jörg Ulrich Krah: “I have always enjoyed shaping processes and projects in close collaboration with my teams — as a musical director, as head of an excellence programme for young musicians, and as director of a large educational institution. The Royal Conservatoire brings together two centuries of tradition, the interdisciplinary character of its many departments, the remarkable Amare building — shared with the Residentie Orkest and Nederlands Dans Theater — and strong international partnerships such as the IN.TUNE alliance. Together with its distinguished faculty, this provides an exceptional foundation for preparing students for the rapidly changing realities of the profession, combining the pursuit of artistic excellence with a clear understanding of the world they are about to enter. I very much look forward to working with my new colleagues and the students.”
About Jörg Ulrich Krah
Born in Munich, Jörg Ulrich Krah is an internationally acclaimed cellist and composer whose artistic career has, for more than fifteen years, gone hand in hand with senior leadership roles at leading educational institutions.
As a cellist, Krah performs across an exceptionally broad musical spectrum, ranging from early music and the core solo and chamber music repertoire to contemporary music, jazz, electronic music and improvisation. He has appeared regularly with artists including Jordi Savall, Christina Pluhar, the Signum Saxophone Quartet and Klaus Mertens at prestigious venues such as the Musikverein in Vienna, the Philharmonie de Paris and the Salzburg Festival. A recurring theme in his programming is the rediscovery of overlooked repertoire, from the music of Felix Draeseke to works by women composers including Florence Price and Emilie Mayer. To mark the 250th anniversary of Beethoven's birth in 2020, Krah commissioned three new works by the German composer Georg Katzer, conceived as a dialogue with Beethoven's cello sonatas. The project was subsequently presented internationally.
Alongside his performing career, Krah is an active composer working across a wide range of genres, with a particular focus on chamber music and music theatre, where he also works as a musical director. His compositions have been performed at venues including the Sydney Opera House, the Vienna Konzerthaus and the Grand Théâtre de Luxembourg, in collaboration with directors such as Barrie Kosky.
His work has been recognised with the Theodor Körner Prize and the Composition Prize of the International Society for Contemporary Music (ISCM).
With more than 25 years of teaching experience, Krah currently teaches composition at the Institute of Music at Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences. His former students have won major prizes and gone on to careers as professional performers, orchestral musicians and teachers.
He holds a Master's degree in Composition, as well as artistic diplomas in Cello and Instrumental Pedagogy from the Music and Arts University of the City of Vienna, all awarded with distinction. He also completed studies in cultural management. His teachers included Hans Werner Henze, Anner Bylsma and the Artemis Quartet.
The Royal Conservatoire warmly welcomes Jörg Ulrich Krah to The Hague and looks forward to a fruitful and inspiring collaboration.