Ensembles

DUO Hartig - Broekhans

Duo Hartig - Broekhans, have more than 25 years of enjoying painting music together. They started as an ensemble suggested by their chamber music teacher Jan Gruithuyzen at the Rotterdams Conservatorium who recognised their compatibility and interest in the same way of expressing music and the sound they wish to bring to the listener.

In 2004 they won a prize at the Concorso Internazionale di Musica da Camera ‘Gaetano Zinetti in Verona.

In July 2022 a cd ‘D a r k V e l v e t’ came out on the label Challange Records with pieces written and arranged specially for this project.

Since then they have given recitals in Italy, The Netherlands, Serbia and Finland.

Roctet

Roctet is the Netherlands' first permanent string octet and has gained a unique position in the chamber music world since its founding in 2016. Known for its expressive and energetic playing style, the ensemble is heard on both national and international stages. Besides performances in leading concert halls, Roctet can regularly be heard in live broadcasts on radio and television. A highlight was its acclaimed debut in the Great Hall of The Concertgebouw in Amsterdam.

January 2025 saw the release of Roctet's second album CHANGES, featuring as the title work a new piece by Theo Loevendie, composed especially for the ensemble. Also heard on this album are Respighi's Octet and the monumental Octet by George Enescu. For this album, Roctet was nominated for an Edison Klassiek 2025 in the chamber music category, a recognition that underlines the ensemble's leading position within Dutch chamber music. The album was met with praise in the press. “Another bullseye” wrote Trouw, praising the ensemble for its “incredible precision and joie de vivre.The Parool spoke of “a little piece of magic that moves the listener to tears several times”.

In 2020, Roctet released his debut album Novoselye – Housewarming out on Challenge Records International, featuring works by Mendelssohn, Shostakovich and the world premiere of Novoselye by Nikolay Afanasyev.

With a relentless drive to innovate the string octet repertoire, Roctet remains committed to raising the profile of this unique chamber music genre. By combining great classics with new, groundbreaking compositions, the ensemble aims to firmly establish the string octet as a full-fledged ensemble.

Roctet bestaat uit:

Joris van Rijn viool
Julija Hartig viool
Dimiter Tchernookov viool
Filipe Fernandes viool
Francien Schatborn altviool
Frank Brakkee altviool
Eveline Kraayenhof cello
Anneke Janssen cello

Ensemble REI

Rei is an ancient Greek word from a quote of an ancient Greek scientist, Heracleitus. He was the first one who realized that in the core of all things, the material is not vast but flowing. His quote is one of the most famous of all times: “Ta panta rei”. Which means: Everything flows.

Nowadays, we live in a world that enhances this fact more than ever before. Everything changes constantly and rapidly. Our ensemble has the ambition to resemble our society and way of life in the modern era: we play in flexible combinations of chamber music formations with a core of string instruments, from duo to large ensemble and from Baroque to Rock!

Another important element of Ensemble Rei is to combine as many different nationalities as possible. Our idea is that music unites people as an universal language. It stands above borders and boundaries of countries, regions, languages and cultures and builds bridges between the intellect and the emotions of all human beings. In a time of strong polarization on all fronts, we find that music and the arts should form an example of how all of us, so extremely diverse, can start celebrating what we have in common rather than challenge our differences. Reed more…

Ludwig

Ludwig is een collectief van gedreven ambitieuze musici en creatieve denkers die hun sporen verdiend hebben in het culturele veld. Ludwig ontleent inspiratie aan zijn artistieke geestesvader Beethoven, wiens ondernemerschap en muzikale visie in zijn tijd een ongekende revolutie teweegbrachten.

In late 2011, six musicians took it upon themselves to defy prevailing trends and initiate a new musical collective. A collective that would distinguish itself through flexibility, not only with respect to its artistic content, but also from a practical point of view: the size of the collective can vary from soloists to a symphonic orchestra. A collective that would not only deliver quality performances driven by an intrinsic need to perform the finest music with the greatest musicians in the best way possible, but also add an enterprising mind and a broad social outlook. The group was born, and goes by the name of LUDWIG, after Beethoven, cultural entrepreneur avant la letter.