Andreas van Zoelen

Andreas van Zoelen started his musical career in the early 90’s as guitar player for different hard rock line ups, of which the band “Sindarin” which featured Andreas with his brother Joachim a.o. could be considered most typical for his early musical direction.After that he studied conducting and saxophone (both degrees ‘Cum Laude’) at the Brabants Conservatorium in the Netherlands. In 1999, he made his debut as a soloist with the symphonic orchestra “Consortium Musicum Divertimento”, while touring through France. Subsequently, he also took on the role of soloist with the “Euregio Jeugd Orkest”. In 2006 he performed the premiere of the Concerto for bass saxophone and orchestra which was written for him by German composer Stefan Thomas in Karlsruhe, Germany, with the Orchestra of the Badisches Staatstheater. In 2007 he was soloist with the Magogo Kamerorkest in Holland, with whom he played the Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Strings by Alexandre Glazounov and the Concerto for Bass Saxophone and Strings, by Jan van Dijk, also a piece that was written for van Zoelen.In 2000, he was invited to play at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland, where he delivered a programme of pieces written for the bass saxophone, that were conceived by Scottish and Dutch composers. More than 80 works have been written for him and his instrument. Several of these pieces have been written for the Spectrum Duo, a combination of bass saxophone and english horn, played by his wife Susanne. Apart from his studies of saxophone and conducting at the “Brabants Conservatorium”, he studied with the famous Carina Raschèr, daughter of the pioneer saxophonist Sigurd Raschèr. He is in his capacity of bass saxophonist, associated to the German Raschèr Saxophone Orchestra. Van Zoelen could also be admired on many occasions as a musician with the Beethovenhalle Orchester, Bonn, the Brandenburg State Symphonic Orchestra, the Bochumer Symphoniker and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, under Sir Simon Rattle. He has performed regularly for international Radio and Television. Apart from this work van Zoelen also has a large collection of old saxophones from the beginning of the instruments era, on which he plays many recitals with pianist Martien MaasVan Zoelen teaches at the Tilburg School of Dance and Music and the Fontys Conservatorium. He also works extensively as arranger. In 1996 he was awarded the ‘Spiero’ Prize, in 2002 he was winner of the Jacques de Leeuw Cultural Prize.I edited my profile with Thomas Myspace Editor V4.4 (www.strikefile.com/myspace)