Simon (Sim) Gokkes (21 March 1897 in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

– 5 February 1943 in

Auschwitz Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschw ...

) was a

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

-Jewish composer. As a child, Gokkes took his first singing lessons with Ben Geysel, an opera singer who ran the Rembrandt Theatre of Amsterdam. Gokkes was also a pupil of Victor Schlesinger,

cantor A cantor or chanter is a person who leads people in singing or sometimes in prayer. Cantor as a profession generally refers to those leading a Jewish congregation, although it also applies to the lead singer or choir director in Christian contexts. ...

of the Rapenburg Synagogue in Amsterdam. In 1912, Gokkes wrote his first compositions, "Ngolinu Leshabiag" and "Yigdal". He studied composition with Sem Dresden and also piano and flute at the

Conservatorium van Amsterdam The Conservatorium van Amsterdam (CvA) is a Dutch conservatoire of music located in Amsterdam. This school is the music division of the Amsterdam University of the Arts, the city's vocational university of arts. The Conservatorium van Amsterdam ...

, finishing in 1919. He then worked as an assistant director of the Netherlands Opera. Throughout his life, Gokkes directed several choirs. In 1921, he founded the School Choir of Amsterdam. For years he was director of the ''Santo Serviçio'', the choir of the Portuguese Synagogue in Amsterdam. Gokkes is known as an innovator of

synagogue music Temple origins The earliest synagogal music was based on the same system as that used in the Temple in Jerusalem. According to the Talmud, Joshua ben Hananiah, who had served in the sanctuary Levitical choir, told how the choristers went to ...

. His compositions relate primarily to religious themes. In 1923, Gokkes married pianist Rebecca Winnik. Along with his wife and his two children, David and Rachel, he was murdered in

Auschwitz concentration camp Auschwitz, or Oświęcim, was a complex of over 40 Nazi concentration camps, concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany, occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) d ...

on 5 February 1943. Only some of his works are preserved in the

Netherlands Music Institute The Netherlands Music Institute (Nederlands Muziek Instituut, NMI) is the central institution for the preservation of the musical heritage of the Netherlands. History of the institute The NMI has existed as a foundation since 1996; it became full ...

Works preserved at the Netherlands Music Institute

* ''Le pèlerin de Jérusalem'', Amsterdam, May 1928, lyrics by

Jacob Israël de Haan Jacob Israël de Haan (31 December 1881 - 30 June 1924) was a Dutch Jewish literary writer, lawyer, anti-Zionist and journalist who immigrated to Palestine in 1919. There he became more religiously committed and served as the political spokes ...

, for voice and piano * ''Kaddisch'', Amsterdam, June 1928, for voice and piano * ''C’en est fait'', June 1928, lyrics by Ernest Bussy, for voice and piano * ''Kermesse d’été'', Amsterdam, May 1928, lyrics by

Willem de Mérode Willem de Mérode (September 2, 1887 in Spijk (Groningen), Spijk – May 22, 1939 in Brummen, Eerbeek) was the pseudonym of the Dutch poet, Willem Eduard Keuning. Biography Willem Eduard Keuning was born in the Netherlands on 2 September 1 ...

, for voice and piano * ''Duiven'', Amsterdam, May 1928, lyrics by François Pauwels * ''La lune blanche luit dans les bois'', Amsterdam, June 1928, lyrics by

Paul Verlaine Paul-Marie Verlaine ( ; ; 30 March 1844 – 8 January 1896) was a French poet associated with the Symbolism (movement), Symbolist movement and the Decadent movement. He is considered one of the greatest representatives of the ''fin de siècle'' ...

, for voice and piano * ''Trois Lieder hébreux'', Amsterdam, 1926, lyrics by Jehuda-ben Samuel Hallevi, for voice and piano * ''Kaddisch'', Amsterdam, June 1928, for voice and piano * ''Sonatine'', June 1939, for piano * ''Kinah'', Amsterdam, April 1928, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Chapter I, Verses 1-8, for solo voices, wind quintet and piano {{DEFAULTSORT:Gokkes, Sim 1897 births 1943 deaths Dutch male classical composers Dutch classical composers Dutch male conductors (music) Modernist composers Dutch people who died in Auschwitz concentration camp Musicians from Amsterdam Dutch Jews who died in the Holocaust Jewish composers Conservatorium van Amsterdam alumni 20th-century Dutch conductors (music) 20th-century Dutch male musicians