Simon (Sim) David Gokkes was a Dutch Jewish composer, conductor and musical innovator whose promising career was tragically cut short by the Holocaust. Gokkes' expertise spanned several musical fields, including composition, choral conducting and synagogue music. His innovative approach to preserving and renewing traditional Jewish melodies, coupled with his modern compositional techniques, made him an important figure in Dutch Jewish music of the early 20th century. However, the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands and the subsequent Holocaust not only claimed Gokkes' life, but also resulted in the loss of much of his musical legacy, leaving only fragments of his work for posterity.
Born in Amsterdam, Gokkes showed musical talent from an early age. He received his first vocal training from Ben Geysel, an opera singer, and Victor Schlesinger, cantor of the Rapenburg Synagogue in Amsterdam. By the age of fifteen, Gokkes had already composed his first works, 'Ngolinu Leshabiag' and 'Yigdal', which were performed by the Rapenburg Synagogue choir in 1912. As a teenager he began to conduct several choirs, foreshadowing his future career.
Gokkes continued his formal musical education at the Amsterdam Conservatory, where he studied composition with Sem Dresden, as well as piano and flute. After graduating in 1919, he worked briefly as an assistant director at the Netherlands Opera before military service interrupted his career. This early experience in opera would later influence his approach to vocal composition.
In 1921, following his military service, Gokkes founded the Amsterdamsche Korenschool (Amsterdam Choir School). This initiative aimed to revive the 'Liedertafel' style of male voice choirs and, according to contemporary newspapers, achieved considerable artistic success. Gokkes' innovative approach to choral music extended to his long-standing role as conductor of the Santo Serviço, the choir of the Portuguese synagogue in Amsterdam.
Gokkes is best known for his contributions to synagogue music, with a particular focus on preserving and renewing traditional Jewish melodies. His 'Sjire Kodesh', a book of synagogue service melodies, exemplifies his efforts to maintain the authenticity of Jewish musical traditions while employing modernistic compositional techniques, some of which show the clear influence of the French composers Debussy and Milhaud. Gokkes believed that secular influences, particularly from opera, had become too dominant in synagogue music, and he sought to restore what he perceived as lost purity.
One of his notable works, composed in 1928, was inspired by the Lamentations of Jeremiah. This piece for solo voices, wind quintet and piano showed Gokke's innovative approach, with the singers singing only the syllable 'ha' - a remarkably modern technique for the time. In the same year he also wrote subtle songs to Dutch, Hebrew and French texts, demonstrating his versatility as a composer.
Gokke's oeuvre also included secular works, such as his Sonatina for Piano (1939), which incorporates themes from the biblical story of Esther. This piece, believed to be his last surviving composition, demonstrates Gokkes' ability to weave Jewish themes into classical forms. The composer Max Vredenburg, reviewing Gokkes's compositions in 1933, acknowledged his preference for vocal music and praised his smaller works for male choir, although he was critical of Gokkes's larger work, "Exodus".
The rise of Nazi Germany and the subsequent occupation of the Netherlands had a devastating effect on Gokkes' life and career. In 1939 he was offered the opportunity to conduct the Palestine Symphony Orchestra (now the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra) by the Polish violinist Bronislaw Huberman. This invitation, part of Huberman's efforts to save Jewish musicians from Nazi persecution, could have saved Gokkes and his family. However, Gokkes declined the offer, preferring to remain in the Netherlands.
Tragically, this decision proved fatal. Gokkes, his wife Rebecca and their two children David and Rachel were deported to Auschwitz concentration camp, where they were murdered on 5 February 1943. The Nazi occupation and the Holocaust resulted in the loss of much of Gokkes' musical output. The looting of Jewish property led to the disappearance of many of his manuscripts and compositions.
Today, only a fraction of Gokkes' works survive, preserved in the Netherlands Music Institute. What remains is remarkable for its high quality and surprisingly modern character, suggesting the potential of a career that was tragically cut short. The story of Simon David Gokkes, though fragmentary, shows the extent of the loss of such musical artistry and is a sobering reminder of the countless talents lost during one of the darkest periods in history.
Sources
Scholten D. Simon Gokkes. In: Alders C, Pameijer E, eds. Suppressed Composers in the Netherlands: Forbidden Music in the Second World War. Boydell & Brewer; 2024:109-114.
Sholten, Diet Simon Gokkes. Forbidden Music Regained website, accessed Sep 2024.
Evans, C.J. 2020. Rediscovering the Forgotten Music of the Holocaust: The Life and Music of the Dutch-Jewish Composer Sim Gokkes. Thesis, MA by Research. University of Birmingham.
