Amsterdam venue cancels Chanukah concert because singer is IDF cantor
Jewish organisers seek legal action; the hall director’s grandfather signed a 1940 order expelling Jews from the Dutch civil service
An Amsterdam venue hosting the city’s annual Chanukah concert cancelled the event this week in protest over the planned participation of the IDF’s chief cantor, retired Lt. Col. Shai Abramson.
The Royal Concert Hall, or Concertgebouw was scheduled to host the event, organised by the Chanukah Concert Foundation, on December 14th.
In a statement on Sunday, it claimed that it had been long asking for a change to the programme and cancelled the concert, when one was not made: “This decision was made because it was not possible to reach an agreement on an alternative to the performance by the IDF Chief Cantor”, adding: “For The Concertgebouw, it is crucial that the IDF is actively involved in a controversial war and that Abramson is a visible representative of it.”
Cantor Shai Abramson’s website says his performances around the world are done “with the intention of developing and strengthening ties with Jewish communities around the world, and intensifying connections with Israel and with the IDF.”
Jewish community leaders in the Netherlands and officials in Israel have condemned the decision, whose impact has been exacerbated by the revelation by Dutch-Jewish lawyer Oscar Hammerstein that the grandfather of the Concertgebouw’s current director, Simon Reinink, signed the November 1940 order expelling all Dutch-Jewish civil servants under Nazi occupation.
On Tuesday, Amichai Chikli, the Israel Minister for Diaspora Affairs wrote to Femke Halsema, the city’s mayor, asking her to condemn the Royal Concert Hall’s decision. “Silence now would be complicity.” Amsterdam, he added, “must not remain silent while its institutions single out Jews and contribute to the isolation of a small and already vulnerable community.”
Protesting on Twitter/X on Thursday, he then wrote: “Today, Dutch attorney Oscar @HammersteinO, a leading voice against antisemitism, revealed a documented historical link: The grandfather of the Concertgebouw’s current director, Simon Reinink, signed the November 1940 order expelling all Jewish civil servants under Nazi occupation. 75% of Dutch Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. 102,000 out of 140,000, the highest proportion in Western Europe. Now, on the eve of the 87th anniversary of Kristallnacht, Jews are once again being excluded in Amsterdam.”
In a statement on its website on Thursday, the Concertgebouw venue wrote that the decision “to end its agreement with the Stichting Chanukah Concert has understandably prompted many reactions and strong emotions. We were faced with a dilemma in which any choice would inevitably lead to incomprehension, anger, or sadness. This has been reflected in the responses we have received. For this reason, we feel compelled to further explain our decision and the considerations behind it.”
Noting “there is confusion surrounding the role of IDF Chief Cantor Shai Abramson”, it claimed “our decision was in no way influenced by the fact that Mr. Abramson is Jewish, Israeli, or has a standard affiliation with the IDF—an affiliation shared by nearly all Israeli citizens. Our concern lies solely with his active role as Chief Cantor of the IDF. In this capacity, Mr. Abramson plays a prominent role within the Israeli military and represents the IDF at official events.
“For Het Concertgebouw, the decisive factor is the IDF’s active involvement in a controversial war, and Mr. Abramson’s visible representation of that institution. We wish to remain distant from this controversy, which is unrelated to music. It is the music that must remain at the heart of our programming.”
It claims to “regret that our decision has caused pain and misunderstanding” and emphasised that “Jewish and Israeli musicians are, and will continue to be, an essential part of Het Concertgebouw’s programming. We remain committed to finding a solution that honours all those involved.”
In a statement, Chief Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, president, Conference of European Rabbis said: “It is tragic that in the city of Spinoza, Van Gogh and Rembrandt, policemen who refuse to secure Jewish institutions are being excused, rioters who threw Jewish football fans into the cold canals in the middle of November, are barely punished, and Jewish concerts are being banned from public venues.”
The European Jewish Congress said: “We strongly condemn Het Concertgebouw’s decision to cancel the B’nai B’rith Chanukah Concert after pressuring organizers to replace Cantor Shai Abramson because of his past role as Chief Cantor of the IDF.
“Excluding a Jewish cantor from a religious celebration for this reason is discrimination, pure and simple. It turns a cultural, spiritual and joyful event into a political statement and undermines freedom of religion and artistic expression. Chanukah is a time to celebrate light over darkness.
“No artist should be judged or banned because of their nationality or faith. We stand firmly with the organizers and the Dutch Jewish community and call on Het Concertgebouw to reverse this decision and ensure that Jewish life can be celebrated freely and safely in Europe.”
Leaders of Dutch Christian Zionists also protested on Thursday in Amsterdam against the Royal Concert Hall’s decision.
One banner read: “Royal Concert Hall: Jews banned in 1941, banned for Israeli Jews in 2025.” Another read: “Banned for Israeli Jews now, soon banned for all Jews?”
Zvi A. Vapni, Ambassador of Israel in the Netherlands, said: “The decision of @Concertgebouw’s to cancel a Chanukah concert, organized by the Jewish community because the cantor has “ties” with the IDF, is shameful and appalling. In Israel, military service is a duty shared by all as we need to defend our democracy and people. By excluding an artist for his service, they betray their own stated mission to unite through music. This hypocrisy and discrimination are not culture. It looks more like caving in to some hateful crowd.”
B’nai B’rith president Robert Spitzer and chief executive Daniel Mariaschin have written to the Royal Concertgebouw condemning the cancellation, writing that they “urge the Concertgebouw to reverse this bigoted decision immediately and allow the celebration to proceed as planned.”
In a statement on Sunday, the Chanukah Concert Foundation said the Jewish community has been facing exclusion in the cultural sector for over two years.
“It is ironic that the Concertgebouw — where Chanukah celebrations have been held since December 14, 1921, a tradition interrupted only by World War II — is now confronting the Jewish community with exclusion and isolation.”
Last year’s concert marked a decade since the post-Holocaust revival of Amsterdam’s Chanukah concert series, relaunched 70 years after it was stopped by the Nazis, who murdered three-quarters of the Dutch Jewish population.
The Foundation plans to pursue legal action against the Concertgebouw.
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