* Tijdens het nieuwjaarsconcert van 2025 werden de bezoekers compleet overrompeld door het speelplezier van het Conical Brass Quintet en de milde klanken van hun ‘conische’ blaasinstrumenten. De vijf jonge musici, afkomstig uit alle windstreken, muziekstudenten aan het Conservatorium van Amsterdam, speelden de sterren van de hemel met stukken van onbekende componisten én van Strauss. Wat zouden Gerardo Gianolio (cornet), Carlo Caravaggi (cornet), José Nuno Miranda (Franse hoorn), Ibai de Miguel Garcia (euphonium) en Samuel Hernández (tuba) voor het nieuwjaarsconcert van 2027 in petto hebben? We laten ons graag verrassen. Strauss is ongetwijfeld weer van de partij.

BIOGRAFIE (Engels)

Conical Brass Quintet was founded in 2024 within the academic environment of the Conservatorium van Amsterdam, bringing together talented musicians from Italy, Portugal, and Spain. The ensemble was created with the aim of fully exploring and expanding the artistic possibilities of the brass quintet format.

True to its name, Conical Brass Quintet exclusively uses conical-bore instruments. Instead of traditional trumpets, the ensemble performs on cornets or flugelhorns, while the trombone is replaced by the euphonium. This deliberate choice seeks a distinctive and cohesive timbre: a darker, warmer, and more balanced sound in which all voices blend organically, as opposed to the more contrasting and heterogeneous sonority of the traditional brass quintet.

This innovative approach allows the ensemble to explore new repertoire and to offer fresh, nuanced interpretations of established works written for brass quintet, as well as original arrangements of string quartet repertoire specially adapted for this unique instrumentation.

Despite its recent formation, Conical Brass Quintet has already performed in several successful concerts in Italy and the Netherlands, including appearances at prominent venues such as Muziekgebouw aan ’t IJ in Amsterdam, where they received enthusiastic responses from audiences.

The quintet reached the semifinals of the Gasparo da Salò International Chamber Music Competition and is a member of the Netherlands String Quartet Academy (NSKA). Through the NSKA, the ensemble regularly participates in masterclasses with members of some of the world’s leading string quartets.

The group has also received coaching from Yovan Markovitch (Quatuor Danel), Nicolas Isabelle (Orchestra of the 18th Century), and Jasper de Waal (former Principal Horn of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra).

Conical Brass Quintet, 19 januari 2025 in De Schutse