STOCKHOLM CHAMBER BRASS
Stockholm Chamber Brass
Stockholm Chamber Brass was founded in 1988 by five young Swedes, originally only to rehearse brass chamber music together. However, with funding from the Royal Swedish Academy of Music, SCBrass decided to travel to Narbonne, France, for their first public engagement at the International Competition for Brass Quintets. The group went on to win 1st Prize and so began its nearly 30 year career as one of the leading Brass Ensembles in the world.
Very early on in the development of the quintet, SCBrass made the active commitment to seek out commissions from new and established composers alike, in order to enlarge the amount of original repertoire for brass quintet. The first commission was made in 1990 and since then over 40 compositions have been written or the group, with more currently in development! Through the constant programming and recording of these works, many of the SCBrass commissions have gone on to become the most frequently performed original works for brass quintet around the world. Notable composers to write for the group include Anders Hillborg, Sven David Sandström, Karin Rehnquist, Christian Lindberg, Eino Tamberg and Piers Hellawell.
To date, the ensemble has recorded 6 critically acclaimed CDs including the classics of the quintet genre, a CD of commissions and their most recent album THEN, a collection of songs and dances from the renaissance era in arrangements by SCBrass members and friends. The American Record Guide wrote of the album Clockworks, “I cannot imagine that a better brass quintet has ever existed.”
SCBrass regularly perform around the world, playing in major festivals such as the Bad Kissingen Sommer, Schleswig-Holstein, Niedesächsische Musiktage, International de Musique Sion Valais, Prague Spring, Budapest International, Internacional de Santander, Soundstream (Toronto), Vinterfest and Belfast Festivals. Unusually, the group have yet to visit the United States of America, although this will be rectified with a concert tour in late 2016.
Alongside creating a legacy of repertoire for Brass Quintet, the group are passionate educators and regularly give masterclasses to the next generation of brass musicians. They have been the guest ensemble at brass festivals such as Lieksa Brass Week, the International Trombone Festival, the Melbourne International Festival of Brass, Epsival Limoge and the Blekinge International Brass Academy. In 2015 SCBrass were delighted to be invited to become the Brass Quintet in Residence at the prestigious Sibelius Academy Helsinki, Finland, for a 3 year series of concerts and programmes with the students there.
On the concert stage, the quintet have often expanded the group to be able perform repertoire outside the standard quintet setting. Regular guests who have collaborated with the group include Christian Lindberg, Håkan Hardenberger, Reinhold Friedrich, Jeroen Berwaerts and Roland Pontinen. Away from SCBrass, the members are regular soloists in their own right and have been prize winners at international solo competitions including the ARD- Wettbewerb, ICEM Geneve, Toulon, Markneukrichen and Aeolus International Competition for Wind Instruments.
www.urbanagnas.com
www.monette.net/newsite/
Equipment list:
C Trumpet - Dave Monette XLT C trumpet 2605 with 30 year anniversary bell, Mouthpiece Monette Prana CUAL
Bb Trumpet - Dave Monette XLT 2505, Mouthpiece Monette Prana BUA
Piccolo Trumpet - Yamaha 3 valve
Urban Agnas
Swedish born Urban Agnas studied at the Ingesund College of Music in Arvika, Sweden. In 1987 he became the principal trumpet with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra before moving to the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra in 1989 where he remained until 1992.
Urban won prizes at the ARD-Wettbewerb in Munich in 1986 and the Radio France International Trumpet Competition in Toulon in 1987. As a soloist he has performed with orchestras such as the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Norrköping Symphony Orchestra, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra and the London Mozart Players, with whom he has also recorded J. N. Hummel’s trumpet concerto on CD. Alongside his brother, Joakim Agnas, and pianist Ida Mo Urban released his own CD, ”Fingerprints 1" in 2005.
Since 2001 Urban is professor of trumpet at the prestigious Academy of Music in Cologne, Germany. Before accepting his position in Cologne he taught at the Music Academies in Stockholm, Gothenburg Ingesund and Piteå. He has taught at numerous festivals including the Blekinge International Brass Academy, Karlskrona and the European Academy for Music and Art, Montepulciano and given masterclasses across the world in Portland, Hong Kong and Oslo to name a few. Urban also brings his expertise to larger ensembles, conducting orchestras across Scandinavia and coaching the musicians of both the Stavanger Symphony and Swedish Chamber Orchestras.
Before embarking on his career in classical music Urban was the leading studio trumpeter in Sweden and worked for all of Stockholm’s studios in 1980’s. He has performed with the legendary American Singer/Songwriter Burt Bacharach and also with the Swedish singer Tommy Körberg live at the Eurovision Song Contest. When he has time away from the quintet Urban regularly performs in his Trumpet and Guitar duo, Agnas X2, with his wife Sabina. Their album, "Ahora Aquí", was released this year.
Urban Agnas is a long time Monette client, and plays on David Monettes instruments and mouthpieces.
www.tompoulson.com
Equipment list:
C Trumpet - Dave Monette XLT-STC,
Mouthpiece Monette C2S3 Mouthpiece
Bb Trumpet - Bach Stradivarius ML 37,
Mouthpiece Bach 1 1/4C Mouthpiece
Piccolo Trumpet - Scherzer Bb/A 8111,
Mouthpiece Wallace Collection P2G2 Mouthpiece
Tom Poulson
Tom Poulson has performed across Europe, Asia, Africa and North America. He is a member of Stockholm Chamber Brass, WorldBrass and KammarensembleN and a prize winner at various international competitions, including the Aeolus International Music Competition for Wind Instruments in Düsseldorf and Yamaha Music Foundation of Europe competition.
As a concerto soloist he has appeared with the Royal Stockholm and Royal Flemish Philharmonic Orchestras, Düsseldorf and Nürnberger Symphonikers amongst others and was the soloist in a private concert for Princess Anne in Mauritius. Tom’s passion for new music has seen him give dozens of premieres of works by composers such as Mike Svoboda, Oliver Searle, Gareth Williams and Timothy Cooper. He regularly appears as a guest of contemporary music groups including the Ensemble Modern (Germany), Red Note (Scotland) and Aarhus Sinfonietta (Denmark).
A graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, where he studied with John Wallace, he performed Jolivet’s Concertino for Trumpet, Piano and Strings with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra. He is also a graduate of the International Ensemble Modern Academy in Frankfurt and of the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, Denmark, where he studied with Prof. Kristian Steenstrup.
Currently Tom is serving a one year trial as Co-Principal Trumpet with Västerås Sinfonietta. He has appeared as guest principal trumpet with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. He has been a member of the Lucerne Festival Academy, performing under the baton of Pierre Boulez, and worked as an onstage musician with the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Tom regularly gives masterclasses on trumpet performance and chamber music and is currently a guest teacher at the Sibelius Academy, Helsinki, and a Trumpet and Brass section coach of the National Youth Orchestras of Scotland.
“I couldn't get the smile off my face during Oliver Searle's trumpet Sequenza... Tom Poulson's performance was staggering.”
Michael Tumelty – The Herald
Equipment list:
Dürk D3 Horn with hand hammered body, regular bell, Mouthpiece Stork C10
Ion Balu mute and Lewis mute
Annamia Larsson
Annamia Larsson was born in Sweden, and since 2010 has been the principal Horn of the Gävle Symphony Orchestra, Sweden. She started her orchestral career in the Verbier Festival Orchestra and after that won the position as Co-principal horn of the Royal Opera in Stockholm at the age of 21.
Annamia studied at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm with prof. Dick Gustavsson and prof. Markus Maskuniitty, and also at Universität für Darstellende Kunst und Musik Wien with prof. Roland Berger.
Annamia is frequently performing as a soloist with orchestras in Scandinavia including the Swedish Radio Symphony, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Gävle Symphony and Reykjavik Chamber Orchestras and since 2010 Annamia has been a member of Stockholm Chamber Brass. She is also a member of the Stockholm Sinfonietta and the contemporary ensembles New European Ensemble in the Hague and KammarensembleN in Stockholm. Annamia has performed at festivals around the world including the Vinterfest International Chamber Music Festival Sweden, Stavanger International Chamber Music Festival Norway and the Isla Verde International Brass Festival in Argentina.
Annamia graduated from the soloist diploma class of the Royal College of Music in Stockholm in 2008 and that same year she filled the position as horn teacher of the Royal College of Music in Stockholm before taking on the position full time in 2013. She has given masterclasses for the International Horn Society Macomb USA, South East Horn Workshop Virginia USA and for the Nordic Horn Symposium in various cities in Scandinavia.
In 2006 while Co-Principal Horn in Stockholm Annamia made a video of the famous horn call from Richard Wagner’s opera, Siegfried. This has become one of the most watched videos of classical music on youtube of all time with over a million views, you can watch it here.
www.jonasbylund.com
Equipment list:
Conn 88HT CL 2000, Mouthpiece Bach 5G.
After completing his studies at the Stockholm State Academy of Music in 1987, Jonas Bylund became principal trombonist of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1988 he won 1st prize at the international soloist competition CIEM in Geneve and a year later he took 2nd prize at the ARD-Wettbewerb in München. In 1989 he was offered the position of principal trombone with the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra and in 1990 he returned to Stockholm to join the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, again as principal trombonist, a post he held until 1995. In the 92-93 season he concurrently held the same position with the Bamberger Symphoniker.
Jonas has appeared as a soloist with a number of Europe’s leading orchestras, including the Philarmonia Orchestra (London), Royal Stockholm Philarmonic, Oslo Philarmonic, Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de Suisse Romande, Czech Philarmonic (Brno) and the BBC Scottish Orchestra. He has performed at festivals such as the Chamber Music Festival in Båstad, Stockholm New Music, Oslo Chamber Music Festival, Lieksa Brass Week, Schleswig-Holstein Musikfestival, Bad Kissinger Sommer, Bad Kissinger Winterzauber, Melbourne International Brass Festival and Instrumenta Oaxaca Mexico. Amongst the composers with whom Jonas has collaborated are Anders Hillborg, Sven-David Sandström, Pär Mårtensson, Jonas Forsell, Chrichan Larson and Piers Hellawell.
Since 1995 Jonas has held the position Professor of Trombone at the prestigious Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hannover. His students have been prize winners at inernational competitions such as the ARD Wettbewerb, Prague Spring Competition, Christian Lindberg International Trombone Competition (Valencia) and the Gdansk International Brass Competition. A number of his students have gained positions in leading symphony orchestras including the Bamberger Symphoniker, Deutsche Symphonieorchester (Berlin), Dresdener Staatskapell, NDR Symphonieorchester (Hamburg), SWR Symphonieorchester (Freiburg), the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, Essener Philarmonie, Niedersächsische Statsoper (Hannover), Nationalphilarmonie (Warsaw) and the Hong Kong Philarmonic. In 2006 the Hannover Trombone class was awarded the Emory Remington Award, the International Trombone Association’s prize for best trombone choir.
Jonas has given masterclasses at Guildhall School of Music and Drama (London), Birmingham Conservatoire, CodArts Rotterdam, Catalan Music Conservatory (Barcelona), Nakas Conservatorium (Athens), Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (Glasgow), Hochschule für Musik (Detmold) and the Hans Eisler Hochschule (Berlin). He is frequently invited to serve as a juror at international competitions, which have included CIEM Geneva 1998, Prague Spring Competition 2004, ARD Wettbewerb 2007.
Beside his pedagogic and concert career Jonas Bylund has also been active as an actor in theatre, opera and film. He played the role of the magician in Jonas Forsells opera The Princess and the Moon at the Royal Opera in Stockholm and he appeared as Joe Bailadorno in Frederiks Högbergs brass western The Ballade of Kit Bones.
Jonas Bylund
Equipment list:
F Tuba: Miraphone Elektra Yellow Brass Mouthpiece: Miraphone TU 28
B Tuba: Miraphone Hagen 497 Mouthpiece. Miraphone TU 43
Dirk Hirthe
Dirk Hirthe was born in Germany. After his studies with George A. Monch and Prof. Jens Björn-Larsen he played one year at the state opera in stuttgart. Since 2008 he been the tuba player of the Badische Staatskapelle Karlsruhe and is regularly invited to perform with the leading orchestras in Germany. He has also played with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Lucerne Festival Brass Ensemble as a guest member. As a soloist he has appeared with the Museums Orchester Frankfurt, the Bochumer Sinfoniker, the Badische Staatskapelle amongst others.
Since 2014 Dirk is the Professor for Tuba at the Musikhochschule Karlsruhe. Many of his students have won international competitions and play in orchestras across Europe.
Dirk has given masterclasses at universities in almost every country in Europe including: Conservatoire Superiore Paris, Hochschule für Kunst und Musik Wien, Mozarteum Universität Salzburg, Musikhochschule Krakow and Musikhochschule Vilnius.
Dirk performs on tubas from the German brass manufacturer, Miraphone, and since 2014 he has helped them to develop their tubas. He particularly helped them with the development of their Elektra model F Tuba and their Hagen model B Tuba. Dirk became an official Miraphone Artist in 2015.