The Most Famous

MUSICIANS from Netherlands

This page contains a list of the greatest Dutch Musicians. The pantheon dataset contains 3,175 Musicians, 37 of which were born in Netherlands. This makes Netherlands the birth place of the 11th most number of Musicians behind Japan, and Norway.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Dutch Musicians of all time. This list of famous Dutch Musicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Dutch Musicians.

1. André Rieu (b. 1949)

With an HPI of 69.84, André Rieu is the most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 42 different languages on wikipedia.

André Léon Marie Nicolas Rieu (Dutch: [ˈɑndreː riˈjøː], French: [ɑ̃dʁe ʁjø]; born 1 October 1949) is a Dutch violinist and conductor best known for creating the waltz-playing Johann Strauss Orchestra. Rieu and his orchestra have turned classical and waltz music into a worldwide concert touring act. He resides in his native Maastricht.

2. Bernard Haitink (1929 - 2021)

With an HPI of 62.46, Bernard Haitink is the 2nd most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 37 different languages.

Sir Bernard Johan Herman Haitink (Dutch: [ˈbɛrnɑrt ˈɦaːitɪŋk]; 4 March 1929 – 21 October 2021) was a Dutch conductor and violinist. He was the principal conductor of several international orchestras, beginning with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in 1961. He moved to London, as principal conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra from 1967 to 1979, music director at Glyndebourne Opera from 1978 to 1988 and of the Royal Opera House from 1987 to 2002, when he became principal conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden. Finally, he was principal conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra from 2006 to 2010. The focus of his prolific recording was classical symphonies and orchestral works, but he also conducted operas. He conducted 90 concerts at The Proms in London, the last on 3 September 2019 with the Vienna Philharmonic. His awards include Grammy Awards and the 2015 Gramophone Award for his lifetime achievements.

3. Eddie Van Halen (1955 - 2020)

With an HPI of 60.04, Eddie Van Halen is the 3rd most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages.

Edward Lodewijk Van Halen ( van HAY-lən, Dutch: [ˈɛtʋɑrt ˈloːdəʋɛik fɑn ˈɦaːlə(n)]; January 26, 1955 – October 6, 2020) was an American musician. He was the guitarist and primary songwriter of the rock band Van Halen, which he founded with his brother Alex in 1972. Van Halen also provided backing vocals for both David Lee Roth and Sammy Hagar, and occasionally played the keyboard. Van Halen is widely regarded as one of the greatest guitarists in rock history and was well-known for popularizing the tapping guitar technique, allowing rapid arpeggios to be played with two hands on the fretboard. Rolling Stone named Van Halen the 4th greatest guitarist of all time in its “The 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time” list in 2023.Van Halen dealt with numerous health issues since the 1990s. He died in October 2020 due to complications from throat cancer.

4. Tiësto (b. 1969)

With an HPI of 58.59, Tiësto is the 4th most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 52 different languages.

Tijs Michiel Verwest OON (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈtɛis miˈxil fərˈʋɛst]; born 17 January 1969), known professionally as Tiësto ( tee-EST-oh, Dutch: [ˈcɛstoː]), is a Dutch DJ and record producer. He was voted "The Greatest DJ of All Time" by Mix magazine in a 2010/2011 poll amongst fans. In 2013, he was voted by DJ Mag readers as the "best DJ of the last 20 years". He is also regarded as the "Godfather of EDM" by many sources.In 1997, he founded the label Black Hole Recordings with Arny Bink, where he released the Magik and In Search of Sunrise CD series. Tiësto met producer Dennis Waakop Reijers in 1998; the two have worked together extensively since then.From 1998 to 2000, Tiësto collaborated with Ferry Corsten under the name Gouryella. His 2000 remix of Delerium's "Silence" featuring Sarah McLachlan exposed him to more mainstream audiences. In 2001, he released his first solo album, In My Memory, which gave him several major hits that launched his career. He was voted World No. 1 DJ by DJ Magazine in its annual Top 100 DJs readership poll consecutively for three years from 2002 to 2004.Just after releasing his second studio album Just Be he performed live at the 2004 Summer Olympics opening ceremony in Athens, the first DJ to play live on stage at an Olympics. In April 2007 Tiësto launched his radio show Tiësto's Club Life on Radio 538 in the Netherlands and released his third studio album Elements of Life. The album reached number one on the Belgian album chart as well on Billboard Top Electronic Albums in the U.S. and received a nomination for a Grammy Award in 2008. Tiësto released his fourth studio album Kaleidoscope in October 2009, followed by A Town Called Paradise in June 2014. He won the Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical for his remixed version of John Legend's hit "All of Me" at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards.

5. Armin van Buuren (b. 1976)

With an HPI of 57.72, Armin van Buuren is the 5th most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 55 different languages.

Armin Jozef Jacobus Daniël van Buuren OON ( van BURE-ən, Dutch: [ˈɑrmɪ ˈɲoːzəf jaːˈkoːbʏz ˈdaːnijɛl vɑm ˈbyːrə(n)]; born 25 December 1976) is a Dutch DJ and record producer. Since 2001, he has hosted A State of Trance (ASOT), a weekly radio show, which is broadcast to nearly 40 million listeners in 84 countries on over 100 FM radio stations. According to the website DJs and Festivals, "the radio show propelled him to stardom and helped cultivate an interest in trance music around the world".Van Buuren has won a number of accolades. He has been ranked the number one DJ by DJ Mag a record of five times, four years in a row. He was ranked fifth on the DJ Mag Top 100 DJs list in 2022, as well as fourth in 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2020, and third in 2017. In 2014, he was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording for his single "This Is What It Feels Like" featuring Trevor Guthrie, which makes him the fourth trance artist ever to receive a Grammy Award nomination. In the United States, he holds the record for most entries, twenty-one, on the Billboard Dance/Electronic Albums chart.

6. Ton Koopman (b. 1944)

With an HPI of 56.63, Ton Koopman is the 6th most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.

Antonius Gerhardus Michael Koopman (Dutch: [ˈkoːpmɑn]; born 2 October 1944), known professionally as Ton Koopman, is a Dutch conductor, organist, harpsichordist, and musicologist, primarily known for being the founder and director of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra & Choir. He is a professor in the Royal Conservatory of The Hague and the University of Leiden. In April 2003 he was knighted in the Netherlands and received the Order of the Netherlands Lion.

7. Jan Akkerman (b. 1946)

With an HPI of 53.84, Jan Akkerman is the 7th most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Jan Akkerman (born 24 December 1946) is a Dutch guitarist. He first found international commercial success with the band Focus, which he co-founded with Thijs van Leer. After leaving Focus, he continued as a solo musician, adding jazz fusion influences.

8. Eduard van Beinum (1900 - 1959)

With an HPI of 53.63, Eduard van Beinum is the 8th most famous Dutch Musician. His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Eduard Alexander van Beinum (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɛdu̯ɑrd ʋɑn ˈbɛi̯nəm]; 3 September 1900 – 13 April 1959, Amsterdam) was a Dutch conductor.

9. Frans Brüggen (1934 - 2014)

With an HPI of 53.62, Frans Brüggen is the 9th most famous Dutch Musician. Her biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Franciscus ("Frans") Jozef Brüggen (30 October 1934 – 13 August 2014) was a Dutch conductor, recorder player and baroque flautist.

10. Candy Dulfer (b. 1969)

With an HPI of 51.06, Candy Dulfer is the 10th most famous Dutch Musician. Her biography has been translated into 29 different languages.

Candy Dulfer (born 19 September 1969) is a Dutch jazz and pop saxophonist. She is the daughter of jazz saxophonist Hans Dulfer. She began playing at age six and founded her band Funky Stuff when she was fourteen. Her debut album Saxuality (1990) received a Grammy nomination. She has performed and recorded with her dad Hans, Prince, Dave Stewart, Van Morrison, Angie Stone, Maceo Parker and Rick Braun and has performed live with Alan Parsons (1995), Pink Floyd (1990), and Tower of Power (2014). She hosted the Dutch television series Candy Meets... (2007), in which she interviewed musicians. In 2013, she became a judge in the 5th season of the Dutch version of X Factor.

People

Pantheon has 38 people classified as Dutch musicians born between 1900 and 1996. Of these 38, 34 (89.47%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Dutch musicians include André Rieu, Tiësto, and Armin van Buuren. The most famous deceased Dutch musicians include Bernard Haitink, Eddie Van Halen, and Eduard van Beinum. As of April 2024, 1 new Dutch musicians have been added to Pantheon including Laura Fygi.