Friday, August 27, 2021

Punto Arte Ensemble

Aperitivo 7:00-7:45pm
Concert 8:00pm

Program

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Concerto in G minor for traverso, strings and continuo "La notte" op. 10 n. 2, RV 439
Largo (G minor)
Ghosts: Presto (G minor)
Largo (G minor)
Presto (F major)
Sleep: Largo (C minor)
Allegro (G minor)

Tarquinio Merula (1595-1665)
Ciaccona

Biagio Marini (1594-1663)
Passacaglia for strings

Tarquinio Merula
Ballo known as the “Pollicio" 

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Suite n. 2 in B minor for flute, strings and continuo BWV 1067   
Ouverture
Rondò
Sarabande
Bourrée I and II
Polonaise and Double
Minuetto
Badinerie

The Ensemble

Leon Berendse, flute

Dutch flutist Leon Berendse is a renowned orchestral principal, soloist and teacher. He holds the position of solo flautist with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra and teaches at the Fontys Hogeschool voor de Kunsten in Tilburg. As a soloist Leon performed both Dutch premieres of Christopher Rouse’ and Peteris Vasks’ flute concertos at the Concertgebouw Amsterdam with the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra. He also toured Europe, the Americas and Russia with Combattimento Consort Amsterdam, playing Bach’s Suite No. 2 BWV 1067 amongst other pieces. Leon has held the position of solo flute at the Netherlands Philharmonic and Chamber Orchestra since 1987. With them he performed a wide range of symphonic and operatic repertoire. He recorded several discs including ‘Tour de France’ for which his ‘Daphnis and Chloé’ received critical acclaim. Leon has a busy schedule as one of the Netherlands’ leading flute teachers giving masterclasses internationally, as well as coaching for orchestras such as the Dutch National Youth Orchestra and the Joven Orquesta Nacional de España. In 1998 Leon became a professor at the Fontys Hogeschool voor de Kunsten, previously having held a position at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. He studied with Rien de Reede and Paul Verhey at the Royal Conservatoire in the Hague and received the Nicolai prize for an outstanding final recital upon graduating. He continued his studies with Geoffrey Gilbert in Florida and took part in masterclasses by Trevor Wye and William Bennett.

Quirine van Hoek, violin

Quirine van Hoek is a very versatile musician. She distinguishes herself by her style-sensitive, energetic and virtuosic violin playing. She is mainly active in the field as a violinist on both modern and baroque violin. She is praised for her natural leadership. She likes to explore the corners of music, from historically informed playing of early music, to arranging and performing music for less common settings. She prefers to play in smaller ensembles. Quirine completed her Master violin with distinction in 2011 at the Utrecht Conservatory. She studied with Ilona Sie Dhian Ho and Chris Duindam. During her study she also specialised in Baroque violin with Antoinette Lohmann.

Quirine is a member of Combattimento where she regularly works as a soloist or concertmaster. She also fulfills this role in ensemble Camerata Delft. In addition, together with Ellen Zijm, accordion, she has a special duo: De Thuiskomst.

She is a sought after concert master and chamber musician. As a freelancer she is playing in many different settings, as a concertmaster or with chamber music. She also has a teaching practice at her home in Leidschendam, the Netherlands. In addition to the violin, she is expanding her musical skills as a singer.

Chris Duindam, violin

born in the Netherlands, started his violin studies at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague with Qui van Woerdekom, and Maarten Veeze at the Sweelinck Conservatory in Amsterdam. He graduated at the Utrechts Conservatory, studying with Philip Hirshhorn, Viktor Liberman, Eli Goren and Emmy Verhey. Chris Duindam is a professor at the Tilburgs Conservatory, Utrechts Conservatory. and at the Academie Muzikaal Talent (AMT). He appears regularly as a solist, in chambermusic concerts, gives masterclasses in The Netherlands, and abroad, and is a member of the Combattimento Consort Amsterdam. In 2012 Chris Duindam started the ‘Cugnon Project’ , an initiative to connect young musical talents with professional musicians in playing chambermusic at concerts and at the Cugnon International Chambermusic Festival. Chris Duindam plays on a Jacob Stainer (1660).

Jan Willem de Vriend, viola

Formerly principal conductor of the Residentie Orkest The Hague (from 2015 to 2019), Jan Willem de Vriend is now principal guest conductor of the Orquestra Simfònica de Barcelona i Nacional de Catalunya, Orchestre National de Lille and Stuttgart Philharmonic Orchestra. He is also Artist in Residence at the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra and makes regular guest appearances with such ensembles as the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra and Rotterdam Philharmonic.

De Vriend first established an international reputation as artistic director of the Combattimento Consort Amsterdam, which he established in 1982 and led from the violin until 2015. Specialising in music of the 17th and 18th century, and applying historically informed practice on modern instruments, the consort gave new life to many rarely heard works and Gramophone magazine praised its players as “accomplished … with technical finesse and a lively feeling for characterisation”. Its collaborative spirit lives on in de Vriend’s approach as he explores and energises the symphonic repertoire, in particular the music of Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Brahms and Johann Strauss.

From 2006 to 2018, he was chief conductor of the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra (Het Orkest van het Oosten), based in the city of Enschede. Early in his tenure he made a major impact with Mahler’s Symphony No 1 in the 1893 Hamburg version, subsequently recorded for Challenge Classics. Gramophone magazine wrote: “Don’t miss this one … The music-making is winningly fresh and vigorous”. De Vriend and the orchestra went on to record a substantial Beethoven catalogue for Challenge Classics, embracing the complete symphonies and concertos (with Hannes Minnaar and Liza Ferschtman among the soloists). Classic FM praised the interpretation of Symphony No 7 for “a bounding flair that does real justice to the composer's capacity for joy”. Further landmarks in the Challenge Classics catalogue are the complete Mendelssohn symphonies, again with the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, and the complete symphonies of Schubert, recorded with the Residentie Orkest, also De Vriend’s orchestra for a Decca recording of Mendelssohn’s complete works for piano and orchestra. T

he Konzerthausorchester Berlin was the choice for a Berlin Classics album of Schumann’s complete works for piano and orchestra. From 2008 to 2015 Jan Willem de Vriend was principal guest conductor of the Brabant Orchestra (now the South Netherlands Philharmonic) and he has made guest appearances with, among others, the Belgian National Orchestra, SWR Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart, Royal Flanders Philharmonic Orchestra, Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra, Wiener Kammerorchester and Hong Kong Philharmonic. His future plans include engagements with the Rotterdam Philharmonic, MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra and NDR Radiophilharmonie.

In the field of opera, in both Europe and the USA, de Vriend and Combattimento Consort Amsterdam gave performances, of works by Monteverdi, Haydn, Handel, Telemann, and J.S. Bach (the ‘Hunting’ and ‘Coffee’ cantatas at the Leipzig Bach Festival), all in stagings by the director Eva Buchmann. Operas by such composers as Mozart, Verdi and Cherubini featured in his seasons with the Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, which included a visit to Switzerland with productions of Don Giovanni and Rossini’s La Gazzetta, again directed by Eva Buchmann. De Vriend has also conducted opera in Amsterdam (Nederlandse Reisopera), Barcelona, Strasbourg, Luzern, Schwetzingen and Bergen.

In the Netherlands he has presented several television series and is well known for his appearances on a variety of other programmes about music. In 2012 he received a prize from the national station NPO Radio 4 for his creative contribution to classical music.

René Geesing, cello

Born and raised in Enschede, Mr. Geesing was six years old when he started playing the cello. The choice for the cello was not very conscious, but it turned out to be the right one. After his secondary education he went to study with Jean Decroos at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague. During this study René was a member of the European Youth Orchestra as solo cellist for four years, where he has worked with many prominent conductors such as Abbado, Karajan and Giulini. He has been able to make many tours with this orchestra. After his studies in The Hague, an ITT Fellowship made it possible to continue studying for two years in Cincinnati, USA with Zara Nelsova.

Thanks to a scholarship from the Ministry of Welfare, Health and Culture at the time, René was able to study for another year in Banff, Canada with Janos Starker and Zara Nelsova, among others. After returning to Europe in 1985 he became first solo cellist with the former Orchestra of the East. Since then he has worked extensively as a solo cellist with symphony orchestras in the Netherlands and abroad, such as The London Philharmonic, The Royal Philharmonic and the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra. As artistic director and founder of the Valerius Ensemble, René can fulfill his great passion for chamber music by performing a wide variety of repertoire.

Guillermo Brachetta, harpsichord

Guillermo Brachetta was born and grew up in Argentina and, albeit not a typical Argentinian, he still retains certain national characteristics including the love for cooking, the vehemency for debating and the passion for making music. Guillermo settled in The Netherlands in 1995 in order to perfect his skills in at least one of those disciplines. He graduated from the Conservatory of Amsterdam and has collaborated as a soloist and basso continuo player with many renowned orchestras including the Residentie Orkest, Nederlands Kamerorkest and The New Dutch Academy. It is, however, in making chamber music that Guillermo’s unique improvisational skills and his “supple gravitas” on the harpsichord can be properly enjoyed.

His debut solo recording,“Ciaconna”, has been released on Resonus Classics with enthusiastic reviews (BBC Music Magazine Instrumental Choice May 2014) followed by “Divine Noise”, a recording of his own arrangement for two harpsichords of the opera Platée by Jean-Philippe Rameau, together with Dutch harpsichordist and former teacher Menno van Delft.A co-founder of successful Ensemble Fantasticus, he recorded 5 albums with this critically acclaimed baroque trio. Next to Fantasticus,

Guillermo has a lifelong mission to rediscover and promote the neglected work of Wilhelm Friedemann Bach. Guillermo is very active as a researcher and music editor, working in close cooperation with Cambridge University Press and other international institutions, having prepared first editions of numerous works from the XVII and XVIII centuries.