He began his musical studies in the violin class and continued his vocal education
under the supervision of Max van Egmond at the Sweelinck Conservatory in
Amsterdam, where he graduated with distinction.
Peter Kooij has over 150 phonographic releases to his credit, recorded for prestigious record labels such as Sony, Phillips, Virgin Classics, Erato, EMI, BIS and others.
He has performed all over the world, including the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Musikverein in Vienna, New York’s Carnegie Hall, the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Philharmonie in Berlin, the Palais Garnier in Paris and the Suntory Hall in Tokyo, under conductors such as Philippe Herreweghe, Ton Koopman, Masaaki Suzuki, Frans Brüggen,
Gustav Leonhardt, René Jacobs, Sigiswald Kuijken, Sir Roger Norrington and Ivan Fisher.
He is the artistic director of the Ensemble Vocal Européen.
He has taught at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam and at the Academy of Music in Hanover. He is a professor at the University of Fine Arts and Music in Tokyo, the Royal Conservatory in Prague and, since 2013, at the Academy of Fine Arts in Bremen.
The artist conducts master classes in Germany, France, Portugal, Spain, Belgium, Finland, Japan and Poland. In 2016, Peter Kooij was awarded the prestigious Bach Medal in Leipzig, awarded to the most important promoters of Bach’s music in the world.
 
The artist has been cooperating regularly with Baroque Collegium 1685 since 2018. He has performed in many oratorio-cantata productions, recorded audio/video, and created, among others, the title role in  “Saul” Oratorio by Handel.
In 2019-2021, he leaded his Master Class as part of the Baroque Vocal Master Classes in Szczawnica (Poland)


fot. Marco Borggreve