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…

To my great delight my dear friend Jacob TV (or in full Jacob ter Veldhuis) called me two weeks ago to invite me and my wife Saskia to a Gala Night at the occasion of the BUMA Awards: he is the first classical (contemporary) composer to win the prestigious BUMA Classical Award. And very well…

Happy to tell you that I sent out my ‘Rimas de Bécquer’, (five rhymes by the romantic Andalusian poet Gustavo Bécquer (1836-1870)) to Fokko Oldenhuis, conductor of the Utrechtse Studenten Cantorij. Five songs for choir (SATB + soloists SATBar) and soprano saxophone, in all some 16 minutes of music. Thus fulfilling one of the promises…

Yesterday I had a first run-through with Harmen de Boer, my friend and colleague at both the Netherlands Wind Ensemble and the Conservatorium van Amsterdam,  of the clarinet-version of Consecuencias. A very promising and interesting run-through. He will be premiering it with the Nostos String Quartet at the Lago@Splendor concert on March 28, 2016, at…

It’s been quite a time that I posted something, to busy composing (for Mirasol Duo, Studenten Cantorij Utrecht – Ties Mellema and Arno Piters) and performing (with the Netherlands Wind Ensemble). More on the new compositions soon. This post about a wonderful sax-percussion duo from Slovenia, Janina Lorenci and Lola Mlacnik, both studying at the…

Good news today: confirmation of the premiere of ‘Consecuencias’ at the SAX2015 Festival at the CvA (Conservatorium van Amsterdam) by my friend and colleague Arno Bornkamp. Consecuencias is a piece for alto sax and string quartet in three movements. Premiere will be on Friday 27th of November 2015 at 19.00 hours in the CvA.