The Matthäus Passion, which has been performed in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam since 1899 under the direction of Willem Mengelberg, was strongly romanticized in terms of tone and performance. In this, for example, some recitatives were arranged in an opera way. Various conductors then tried to master this concept and this led to bombastic interpretations such that a recognized Bach expert such as Albert Schweitzer was warned against these practices. In 1921 Johan Schoonderbeek founded the Nederlandse Bachvereniging to raise the performance of the Matthäus Passion in Amsterdam.
 

The Dutch Bach Society
The founding of the Nederlandse Bachvereniging can be seen as a counter-reaction: namely back to a church building and the pursuit of an integral performance based on the original scores of J.S. Bach. In the early 1980s a discussion arose within the Dutch Bach Society about the musical course to be followed, one movement expressed the contribution of more project-oriented performances of various other Bach works, the other movement remained the traditional authenticity of the Maintaining Matthäus Passion as the most important principle. This discussion came to a head in 1983 when the then Ministry of Welfare, Public Health and Culture decided to no longer grant structural art grants, but only to subsidize on a project basis.
 

Bachkoor Holland chooses its own way
This development eventually led to the then conductor Charles de Wolff, together with a few organization members and the almost complete choir, having decided to go their own way. On May 10, 1983, a private association was established that merged with the founding of the Bachkoor Holland in 1984. In the decades that followed, the Bachkoor Holland fulfilled its mission under the direction of Charles de Wolff, among others, to bring the works of Johann Sebastian Bach to the highest possible level, full of passion.

The artistic direction is now in the hands of Gijs Leenaars, who has been associated with Bachkoor Holland since the 2009/2010 season as a permanent conductor. Until 2017, the Pieterskerk in Leiden was the home of the choir. The annual performances of the Matthäus Passion have been given since the end of 2017 in the monumental Nieuwe Kerk in Delft. In addition, the Bachkoor Holland performs the Matthaüs Passion annually in Lochem.