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The Netherlands Wind Ensemble ( nl, Nederlands Blazers Ensemble, NBE) comprises musicians from all the major Dutch symphony orchestras. The NBE is regularly featured in special concert series at
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...
’s main venues: the
Concertgebouw The Royal Concertgebouw ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouw, ) is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" translates into English as "concert building". Its superb acoustics place it among the finest concert halls ...
, Paradiso and the new Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ. The NBE also tours abroad, twice per season on average. The artistic leader of the ensemble is oboist
Bart Schneemann Bart Schneemann (born 1954, in Melbourne) is a Dutch oboist, conductor, teacher and artistic director for the Netherlands Wind Ensemble. In 1977 he graduated from the Conservatory in Amsterdam. From 1976 to 1996, he was the first chair oboist ...
.


History

The ensemble was founded in 1959 by
Thom de Klerk Thom de Klerk (Thomas Johannes Josephus) (10 May 1912, The Hague, Netherlands – 13 October 1966, Abcoude). Dutch bassoonist, double reed maker, music teacher, conductor and music director. Thom de Klerk was the first solo bassoonist of the ...
(1912–1966), principal bassoonist of the Concertgebouw Orchestra who had formed a student wind quintet at the Amsterdam Conservatory (Martine Bakker (flute),
Edo de Waart Edo de Waart (born 1 June 1941, Amsterdam) is a Dutch conductor. He is Music Director Laureate of the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. De Waart is the former chief conductor of the Royal Flemish Philharmonic (2011-2016), Artistic Partner with the ...
(oboe), George Pieterson (clarinet),
Joep Terwey Joep () is a Dutch masculine given name, the Limburgian form of Joseph. It is occasionally used as a feminine name. People with this name include: *Joep Baartmans-van den Boogaart (born 1939), Dutch female politician * Joep van Beeck (1930–201 ...
(bassoon) and Jaap Verhaar (horn)). De Klerk wanted to expand the group in order to perform wind serenades like those by
Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
, Dvorak and
Gounod Charles-François Gounod (; ; 17 June 181818 October 1893), usually known as Charles Gounod, was a French composer. He wrote twelve operas, of which the most popular has always been ''Faust (opera), Faust'' (1859); his ''Roméo et Juliette'' (18 ...
, and aimed to make the ensemble into the " I Musici" for winds. The core of the NBE was a wind octet (pairs of oboes, clarinets, bassoons, and horns), but the ensemble usually expanded to larger dimensions. When De Klerk died in October 1966, Edo de Waart, who had left in 1962 to focus on conducting, took over his role (
Han de Vries Han Samuel de Vries (born 31 August 1941, The Hague), is a Dutch oboist and is considered the doyen of the Dutch school of oboe playing. He studied oboe with Jaap Stotijn at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague and with his son Haakon Stotijn at ...
and
Werner Herbers Werner may refer to: People * Werner (name), origin of the name and people with this name as surname and given name Fictional characters * Werner (comics), a German comic book character * Werner Von Croy, a fictional character in the ''Tomb Rai ...
played oboe since the expansion). In this period, the ensemble made many recordings and multiple composers wrote music for the group. Both De Waart and De Vries left in 1975. The NBE adjusted to play without a conductor, while Joep Terwey and Werner Herbers acted as managers. From 1985 to 1988
Nikolaus Harnoncourt Johann Nikolaus Harnoncourt or historically Johann Nikolaus Graf de la Fontaine und d'Harnoncourt-Unverzagt; () (6 December 1929 – 5 March 2016) was an Austrian conductor, particularly known for his historically informed performances of music ...
joined as conductor. In 1988, the NBE reorganized with many younger players and Bart Schneemann (a student of Han de Vries) taking over the artistic management.


Programs

In the past years, the NBE has created and performed a substantial number of original programs focusing on a particular composer or soloist. Kevin Volans, Roger Doyle, Alexander Raskatov, Carmen Linares,
Guido Morini Guido Morini (born in Milan in 1959) is an Italian pianist, organist, harpsichordist, musicologist and composer. In the ensemble Accordone he performs early baroque works with singer Marco Beasley. Beasley is also the librettist for his ''Una Od ...
, Luca Francesconi, Cornelis de Bondt, Theo Loevendie,
Guus Janssen Guus Janssen (born 13 May 1951) is a Dutch composer of contemporary music and a recording artist. A pianist and harpsichordist, he is also active as a jazz performer. He studied piano and composition at the Sweelinck Academy of Music in Am ...
, John Psathas,
Maarten Altena Maarten van Regteren Altena (born January 22, 1943) is a Dutch composer and contrabassist. Altena attended the Conservatorium van Amsterdam (he studied contrabass) and graduated in 1968. Between 1980 and 1985, he studied composition with Robe ...
, Martijn Padding, Ayub Ogada,
Iva Bittova Iva or IVA may refer to: Organizations * Independent Voters Association, a North Dakota U.S. political organization * Informationsvidenskabelige Akademi, a Danish university * Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, (Swedish: ''Kungliga Ing ...
, the
Pokrovsky Ensemble Pokrovsky, also spelled Pokrovski and Pokrovskii (russian: Покровский), or Pokrovskaya (feminine; Покровская) is a Slavic last name. Its form in neuter is Pokrovskoye. It may refer to: People *Alexander Pokrovsky (1898–19 ...
, the Hilliard Ensemble,
Jordi Savall Jordi Savall i Bernadet (; born 1 August 1941) is a Spanish conductor, composer and viol player. He has been one of the major figures in the field of Western early music since the 1970s, largely responsible for popularizing the viol family of ...
,
Marco Beasley Marco Beasley (26 February 1957, Naples) is an Italian tenor, voice-actor and musicologist. With composer and harpsichordist Guido Morini, Beasley was one of the three founding members of the Accordone early music ensemble in 1984; Stefano Ro ...
,
Aynur Dogan Aynur is a Turkish language, Turkish and Azerbaijani language, Azerbaijani given name for females. As it is derived from the Turkish word ":wikt:ay#Turkish, ay" and the Arabic word ":wikt:nur#Turkish, nur", its literal meaning is moonlight. Giv ...
and
Manos Akhalinotopoulos Manos may refer to: Films * ''The Hands'' (Spanish: ''Las manos''), a 2006 Argentinean-Italian film * '' Manos: The Hands of Fate'', 1966 horror film Music * Manos (band), German Black metal band * ''Manos'' (album), by The Spinanes Other use ...
have all been featured in this way. In addition, the NBE regularly stages programs like ''Mail from Mozart'', which alternates the seven parts of
Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
’s ‘Gran Partita’ with readings from his letters to his father; ''
Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...
’s Diary'', which tells the story of Schumann’s deteriorating mental health through passages from his diary and new interpretations of his piano works by Dutch composer Otto Ketting; or ''The Creation'', which takes, as its point of departure, an 18th century version of
Joseph Haydn’s Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
''Die Schöpfung'' but frames it with an updated Creation myth by Flemish author Bart Moeyaert. Around the
Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...
year 2006, the NBE staged ''Le Nozze di Figaro'', ''Die Zauberflöte'' and ''Cosi fan Tutte'' as a trio of original chamber operas performed on period instruments and featuring the voices of soprano Johannette Zomer and baritone Frans Fiselier. Finally, there is the traditional New Year’s Concert, started in 1972 and since 1995 broadcast live on television from the
Concertgebouw The Royal Concertgebouw ( nl, Koninklijk Concertgebouw, ) is a concert hall in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Dutch term "concertgebouw" translates into English as "concert building". Its superb acoustics place it among the finest concert halls ...
in Amsterdam.


CDs

The NBE has recorded CDs for two major international labels: Philips and Britain’s Chandos. In November 1999, the NBE started its own record label, NBE''LIVE'', which releases two or three live recordings of special NBE projects per year. In 2007 the NBE''LIVE'' CD ''Gran Partita'', a live recording of Mozart's serenade for winds, received an
Edison Award The Edison Award is an annual Dutch music prize awarded for outstanding achievements in the music industry. It is comparable to the American Grammy Award. The Edison award itself is a bronze replica of a statuette of Thomas Edison, designed by ...
.


External links


Netherlands Wind Ensemble official website
* Joep Terwey
The History of the Netherlands Wind Ensemble
SCRAPES International, Vol. 1, 1998, pp. 40-44. * Robert Adelson Allmusic.com "biography"of the ensemble. {{Authority control Chamber music groups Dutch culture Dutch orchestras Instrumental musical groups 1959 establishments in the Netherlands Musical groups established in 1959 Woodwind musicians