Just a block away from London’s Houses of Parliament stands St. John’s Smith Square, a church with quite a history. Built in 1710 it burnt down in 1742, was rebuilt and hit by lightning in 1815, rose from the ashes again and offered room in the interbellum to a boy’s choir with Benjamin Britten one…

Op een steenworp van de Houses of Parliament staat de St. John’s Smith Square, een kerk met een roerige geschiedenis. Ze werd gebouwd in 1710, brandde af in 1742, werd herbouwd en toen door de bliksem getroffen in 1815, herrees wederom en bood in het interbellum plaats aan een jongenskoor waar Benjamin Britten in korte…

Want to let you know that I just finished a piano reduction of ‘Consecuencias’. Originally for alto saxophone/clarinet in Bb and string quartet/string orchestra. The score will be available after the world premiere by Arno Bornkamp. I will keep you posted on that! This is where you can find the world premiere by Arno and…

Last Thursday another piece premiered at a Master Recital. This time by Yu-Ling Chiu at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, one of the best mallet-players I ever heard. She helped me and the Netherlands Wind Ensemble out when two years ago we performed a one and a half hour version of Wagner’s Ring (my arrangement). The…

Last Monday Marijn Migchielsen and Rommert Groenhof premiered my TIEF! for two contrabass trombones at Marijn’s Masters Exam at Codarts Rotterdam, the Netherlands. And I could not be there….. (family reasons) I wrote the piece especially for this occasion. To miss one of the most outstanding bass trombone performances ever (at least that is what…

I had the pleasure and honor to be at all the saxophone exams at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam this summer (not so surprising as I am teaching there…). The saxophone class lead by my dear friend Arno Bornkamp is of amazing variety and artistry. On Friday the 3rd of June three members of the Ebonit…

So many things happening lately that I sort of forgot to post stuff… Exciting premieres coming up and the first by Marijn Migchielsen en Rommert Groenhof at Marijn’s Master Exam at Codarts Rotterdam,27th of June 2016, 20.30 at Rotterdam Codarts. (recommended…) A duet for two contrabass trombones called TIEF (deep) and it is gloomy, poetic…

I just posted the LIVE recording of both Bosquejos del Bosco (Sketches of Hieronymus Bosch) for solo clarinet, LIVE recording of the world premiere! by Arno Piters (amazing performance!) and three of my “Rimas” for choir SATB and soprano saxophone, another LIVE performance; by Ties Mellema – soprano saxophone and the Utrechtse Studenten Cantorij conducted…

Yesterday saw the premiere of ‘Bosquejos Del Bosco’ (sketches of Hieronymus Bosch; schetsen van Jeroen Bosch) for solo clarinet at the Dutch Clarinet Festival 2016 ‘Royal Clarinets’ concert. Royal because the full clarinet section of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra were the featured soloists at this concert. My piece was performed by Arno Piters (who also happens to…

Too much happening lately; so busy that I did not have time to write on it… Just pre-informing you – so to say – that my ‘Charlas’ were premiered by the Mirasol Duo at the NASA Biennial in Lubbock, TX, USA, March 12, 2016; that ‘Consecuencias’ for clarinet and string quartet were premiered by Harmen…