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Amsterdam

Concertgebouw, Sarphatipark and Albert Cuypstraat market

Introduction

Amsterdam visit 3

Prinsengracht to Boeremarkt

Anne Frank house

Westerkerk and Van Gogh museum
Stedelijk Museum of modern and montempoarry art

Concertgebouw-Sarphatipark

Amsterdam and Jews

Kroller Muller Museum

Exit the Stedelijk Museum, turn left and, at the end of the Paulus Potterstraat, left again on van Baerlestraat. Cross the street and walk to the grandiose pillared portico of the Concertgebouw (Concert Hall), with a new glass corridor and protected by a giant glass case due to recent renovation works. This cultural landmark was built in the 1880’s by six Amsterdam entrepreneurs in a bid to erase the city’s philistine reputation. Among those who commented on the money-minded Amsterdammers’ lack culture was Johannes BRAHMS (1833-1897), who, invited to visit the city in 1879, characterized the Dutch as “schlechte Musikanten” (dreadful musicians) and bemoaned the lack of an acceptable venue for his music. Stung into action, the consortium hired architect AL van Gendt (1835-1901) and saw the neo-Renaissance building completed in 1888.

Mahler

Its acoustics—as much by good luck as by good planning—are superb, andit has become a sought-after venue for orchestras and musicians from all over the world. The orchestra which has its home here” Het Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest” is one of the best in the world. First concert took place on 3 November 1888. Willem Mengelberg, who was its conductor for many years (and fired after WWII due to behaviour during the war) had a great influence.

 Among the great names that conducted the orchestra are Richard Strauss, Gustav Mahler, Maurice Ravel, Arnold Schoenberg, Darius Milhaud, Bernard Haitink and Eugen Jochum.
Cross museumstraat and continue along Van Baerlestraat. This street becomes the Roelof Hartstraat, then crosses the Boerenwetering to become Ceintuurbaan. At the end of this street, turn left into the SARPHATIPARK. This small patch of green is named after Samuel Sarphati (1813-1866), a Jewish energetic doctor and do-gooder who almost single-handedly dragged Amsterdam out of the torpor that beset it in the early 19th century. Among his many innovations were a garbage-removal service, a building company, a bank an industrial development organisation and an exhibition centre. He seems to have been the kind of person with the ability to be everywhere at the same time. The pretty little park hardly seems a big enough memorial. Every morning there is a typical market: herrings, Chinese brochettes, Indonesian dishes.
Keep the park to your right, walk up its side and keep going along Eerste Van der Helstraat. Now take the second street on your right: Albert Cuypstraat.
This is the venue of Amsterdam’s sprawling ALBERT CUYPSTRAAT MARKET, which spills over to the surrounding streets for more than 1 km. It is a noisy, bustling expanse of stalls and shops where, if you are prepared to look hard enough, you can buy just about anything. Shopping is a hungry business, and there are plenty of stalls to fortify peckish shoppers for further rummaging through piles of fresh fruit and vegetables, herbs, spices, coffee, tea…..Also plenty of ethnic restaurants (mainly Indonesian and Surinamese)
You can now return to the starting point of our walk.

Bibliography

Holland, by Adam Hopkins (Faber and Faber, 1988), Penguin Guide to Amsterdam (ed.Vincent Westzaan, Penguin 1990), Dwalen door Amsterdam en reizen door de Benelux, ( ed. Lekturama 1984), “Amsterdam: The life of a city” by Geoffrey Cotterell (Saxon house 1974), “Muziekleven in Amsterdam”, by H.Van der Auwera (Pinguin, Utrecht 1998)