Trumpet
Being one of the oldest lead instruments in jazz, the trumpet is now played in various ways in all kinds of different jazz styles. In the lessons you will focus on timing, technique, improvisation, scales & chords, repertoire, and developing your personal sound. Various styles will be dealt with such as swing, bigband, bop, latin, contemporary jazz, pop & fusion, Nordic jazz, and various other musical approaches. Both developing your musical skills, as well as expanding your creativity are important features during the lessons.
Teachers
Toon de Gouw
Toon de Gouw has been active in the Dutch jazz scene since the 1980s. He has worked with creative bandleaders such as Paul van Kemenade, Gijs Hendriks, Willem van Manen and Pierre Courbois. As a trumpet player he has performed all over Europe, the United States, Canada and Japan in many different bands and orchestras in a variety of styles. As a soloist and lead player Toon has been involved with Caoutchouc, Waterland Octet, ICP, Contraband, Nueva Manteca, Timeless Bigband, WDR Bigband, and the Metropole Orchestra.
Robin Rombouts
Robin Rombouts graduated from Fontys MPA. Since 2016 he is a trumpet player in the Royal Dutch Airforce Orchestra, playing concerts in the Netherlands and abroad. As a freelance player Robin played with many bands and artists, such as The Metropole Orchestra, The Danish Radio Big Band, Orchestre de National de Jazz Luxembourgh, Paradox Jazz Orchestra, Red Light Jazz Society, Dr. Brass, and many more. His career is wide and varied, which makes him one of the most versatile players in the Netherlands.
Koen Smits
Trumpeter, composer, and improviser Koen Smits navigates between diverse worlds. His first major exploration was with the group Mudita (alongside vocalist Sanne Rambags and pianist Sjoerd van Eijck). Their debut album was awarded an Edison Award. However, Koen’s playing eludes classification within a single genre. Whether it is contemporary or Nordic chamberjazz, hard swinging big band section work, or the fusion of jazz with electronics, as a trumpetplayer he is always in search for musical adventures. Koen is part of Paradox Jazz Orchestra and has collabared with a great variety of artists and groups such as Kika Sprangers, Sjoerd van Eijck OAK, Gulli Gudmundsson, Eric van der Westen, Metropole Orkest and Jeroen van Vliet. Koen is also an audio engineer and plays with his hornsection The Hornaments for television and recordingstudio's.
There are three steps to the audition:
- 1. Video-preselection
- 2. Theory test
- 3. Live/online session with the main subject teachers
Candidates are expected to prepare material for both the video-preselection and the session with the main subject teachers. This can be the same or similar material for both steps.
1. Video-Preselection
Upload 3-5 videos to your personal upload portal (PortalPlus). Suggested material to prepare and upload:
- To assess your level of ability, you have to prepare three pieces. These pieces should represent different styles (e.g. jazz, funk, latin, pop, et cetera), but at least one piece must be a jazz standard.
2. Theory Test
If you are selected, you will be invited to an online theory test using Microsoft Teams (approx. 30min.). You can find the theory guidelines here.
3. Live/Online session
If you are selected after the first round, you will also be invited for a live or online audition:
- Candidates living in the Netherlands and Belgium will have to do a live audition, location Fontys Academy of the Arts (Zwijsenplein 1, Tilburg).
- Candidates from other countries will have to do an online audition.
Duration of the audition is 15/20 minutes.
When you are invited for a live audition, the commission prefers to see you perform and play your repertoire with an accompaniment/group or band of your own. If possible, bring your own musicians to the audition. In exceptional cases the school can provide accompaniment. Please indicate this on the questionnaire form you will receive after you application. Please be mindful: there is a warm-up room, but there’s no opportunity for a joint rehearsal on campus. Be sure to bring proper sheet music for your band members.
During both live and online sessions, you will be asked to perform your material as prepared for the pre-selection. Besides this, you can be asked to present additional exercises.