Cornelis (Kees) Kef, composer, critic, pianist and choral conductor, promoted modern Dutch music and worked to improve the repertoire of amateur ensembles. The recording artist studied piano, music theory, conducting and composition with Thom Denijs and J. W. Kersbergen and other teachers and learned the art of singing with Mrs. J. Hartog-Benjamins and Guiseppe Reschiglian, among others. Kees Kef worked as a performing artist in Zaandam from 1923 to 1938. For almost thirty years he was conductor of the Zaandam male choir. In 1938, Kef was part of the keyboard trio De Drieklank, which consisted of Annie Jelsma (violin), Kees Kef (piano) and Enne van Sluis (cello).
Kef later settled in Amsterdam, where he also lived through the war years. There was a great need for music during this time and Kees Kef was happy to meet this demand. From 1946 to 1949, he taught at the Muzieklyceum in Amsterdam. In addition to chamber music, he was particularly interested in singing, especially choral singing. He often accompanied vocalists on the piano and played in chamber music ensembles, but it was above all his choral conducting and his highly esteemed compositions that made Kef famous. Kef tirelessly campaigned for a better selection of repertoire among amateurs and emphasized versatility.
He composed for male choir and mixed choir on Dutch texts, including De nar en de Spieghel on six old Dutch proverbs, a composition with a truly Dutch atmosphere, a witty choral work whose old Dutch text and music made a completely homogeneous impression, and three choral compositions with poems by H. Marsman as text. He also arranged Negro Spirituals for male choir. Kef also composed piano works and a sonata for clarinet. Kees Kef wrote the Clarinet Sonata in E flat major in 1956 in memory of Johan van Heil, the painter and clarinettist with whom he often collaborated.
Commissioned by the board of the NVV, Kees Kef composed a festive song to a text by Halbo C. Kool, which was presented to the Federation of Workers' Choral Societies. In 1953, the Kunstmaand Amsterdam Foundation commissioned Kees Kef to compose three choral works to be performed by the Nederlands Kamerkoor under the direction of Felix de Nobel.
He called them Three Capriccios, whimsical pieces, and used texts by Paul van Ostayen for them. Kef possessed a rare and poetic imagination that enabled him to achieve very rich sound effects with relatively simple means. It almost goes without saying that, as a man of practice, he was also excellent at writing for choir. The pieces were received with great enthusiasm on June 11, 1953. The composer had to come on stage to receive the applause.
As a music critic for the daily newspaper Het Vrije Volk, he particularly appreciated amateur groups of singers and musicians, in whose field he possessed an almost unsurpassed expertise.
Many choirs were under his direction, such as the men's choir of the staff association Lux et Libertas of the Algemeen Handelsblad and the a cappella men's choir Amstels Werkman, which he conducted for more than 12 1/2 years. From 1952, he conducted the Volkszangkoor of the VARA, which had set itself the goal of reviving the old folk song.
Kef was also musical advisor to the Union of Amsterdam Singing Societies, held one of the most important board positions in the Dutch conductors' organization and was a member of the Amsterdam Arts Council.
The baritone and opera singer Johan Thomas was a pupil of Kees Kef.
Kees Kef died on November 30, 1961 in his home town of Amsterdam as a result of a heart condition.
