Koninklijke Harmonie van Thorn

Since its founding in 1978 by the Concert Band Association of Baden-Württemberg, the Landesblasorchester Baden-Württemberg (Wind Orchestra Baden-Württemberg, LBO) has presented itself as one of the most successful symphonic bands in Germany. It consists of 80 musicians and the band comes together for four intensive weekends to rehearse for its upcoming concert programme. Numerous international prizes and CD productions attest to the enduring excellence of the band.

Among LBO ́s most recent successes was its first prize in gold with distinction in the Concert Division at the World Music Contest in Kerkrade (2005, NL). In 2011, the band also won the 2nd International Symphonic Band Competition in Berlin.

At a young age conductor Björn Bus began as percussionist before taking up the trombone. He studied the trombone at the music conservatories of Maastricht and Aachen. He studied conducting with Alex Schillings and Jan Cober at the music conservatories of Groningen and Maastricht in the Netherlands. In 2011, he received a master’s degree with honours.

At the World Music Contest in Kerkrade (2009, NL), he won the bronze baton, conducting the Marinierskapel der Koninklijke Marine (Dutch Marine Wind Band). Currently, Bus conducts many orchestras in the Netherlands and the professional wind ensemble Helicon. Bus became the LBO’s musical director in 2014.

Geregistreerd tijdens ECWO European Championship for Wind Orchestras May 20 – 21, 2016

In The Great Hall of TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht, the Netherlands door Mirasound Media Services.

Since its founding in 1978 by the Concert Band Association of Baden-Württemberg, the Landesblasorchester Baden-Württemberg (Wind Orchestra Baden-Württemberg, LBO) has presented itself as one of the most successful symphonic bands in Germany. It consists of 80 musicians and the band comes together for four intensive weekends to rehearse for its upcoming concert programme. Numerous international prizes and CD productions attest to the enduring excellence of the band.

Among LBO ́s most recent successes was its first prize in gold with distinction in the Concert Division at the World Music Contest in Kerkrade (2005, NL). In 2011, the band also won the 2nd International Symphonic Band Competition in Berlin.

At a young age conductor Björn Bus began as percussionist before taking up the trombone. He studied the trombone at the music conservatories of Maastricht and Aachen. He studied conducting with Alex Schillings and Jan Cober at the music conservatories of Groningen and Maastricht in the Netherlands. In 2011, he received a master’s degree with honours.

At the World Music Contest in Kerkrade (2009, NL), he won the bronze baton, conducting the Marinierskapel der Koninklijke Marine (Dutch Marine Wind Band). Currently, Bus conducts many orchestras in the Netherlands and the professional wind ensemble Helicon. Bus became the LBO’s musical director in 2014.

Geregistreerd tijdens ECWO European Championship for Wind Orchestras May 20 – 21, 2016

In The Great Hall of TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht, the Netherlands door Mirasound Media Services.

The Koninklijke Harmonie van Thorn (Royal Wind Orchestra of Thorn, KHT) was founded in 1812 as the Philharmonic Society of Thorn. In 1865, the title “Royal” was granted to the orchestra by King Willem III. Throughout the years, the orchestra has been very successful, both on the national and international level, and is generally known to perform on the highest level in amateur wind music. In 2008 the KHT was crowned Dutch National Champion in the highest division for the 14th time, and in 2013 they won the first Open European Championship for Wind Orchestras in Luxembourg. The orchestra has always been led by prominent conductors, in recent years by Sef Pijpers and Jan Cober, to name but a few.

Norbert Nozy is actively involved with the Royal Wind Orchestra of Thorn as a conductor since 2004. Before that, among many other professional activities, Nozy was chief-conductor of The Royal Symphonic Band of the Belgian Guides. Apart from this, Nozy has had an impressive career as a saxophonist. He still performs regularly as a soloist, is a much sought juror, and teaches at the conservatories of Maastricht and Brussels. The composition “Daphnis et Chloë” will be performed together with the choir composed of members of the “Toonkunstkoor” (Roermond, NL) and the “Philips Philharmonisch koor” (Eindhoven, NL).

Each orchestra will play a programme of 45 – 60 minutes, including the test piece “Cerebral Vortex”. This composition was written by Øyvind Moe. He composed this for Musikkforeningen Nidarholm for their participation in the World Music Contest in Kerkrade (2009, NL). The composition is published by Norsk Noteservice.

The title refers to a form of writer’s block caused not by lack of ideas, but rather by the inability to channel and give form to the madness swirling inside the head of someone with a great desire to express something. In this respect, the piece can be said to be a composer’s exercise in keeping focus. A limited amount of material is repeated and treated creating a development that always has a solid anchor point. This is emphasized by the return to the opening theme towards the end.

Moe’s musical background lies in the bands of his home town of Bergen, Norway. He studied composition at the Norwegian Academy of Music, where his teachers included Bjørn Kruse, Henrik Hellstenius, Lasse Thoresen, Asbjørn Schaathun, and Olav Anton Thommesen. He also studied musicology and music technology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), as well as software development at the Bergen University College. As a performer, he has many years of experience playing the saxophone in several of Norway’s leading amateur wind orchestras.

Geregistreerd tijdens ECWO European Championship for Wind Orchestras May 20 – 21, 2016

In The Great Hall of TivoliVredenburg, Utrecht, the Netherlands door Mirasound Media Services.